BCETF Phase One Final Report

BerkshireCountyEducationTaskForcePlanningStudy,
PhaseOneFinalReport,October2016
PreparedfortheBerkshireCountyEducationTaskForce
BCETFPlanningStudy2016,FinalReport
BerkshireCountyEducationTaskForcePlanningStudy,
PhaseOneFinalReport,October2016
ProjectStaff
EliotLevine,Ph.D.,SeniorResearchManager
AbouttheDonahueInstitute
TheUniversityofMassachusettsDonahueInstituteisthepublicservice,outreach,andeconomic
developmentunitoftheUniversityofMassachusettsPresidentsOffice.Establishedin1971,the
InstitutestrivestoconnecttheCommonwealthwiththeresourcesoftheUniversitythroughservices
thatcombinetheoryandinnovationwithpublicandprivatesectorapplications.
UMDIsAppliedResearchandProgramEvaluationgroupspecializesinappliedsocialscienceresearch,
includingprogramevaluation,surveyresearch,policyresearch,andneedsassessment.Thegrouphas
designedandimplementedresearchandevaluationprojectsfordiverseprogramsandclientsinthe
areasofeducation,humanservices,economicdevelopment,andorganizationaldevelopment.
Acknowledgments
TheUMassDonahueInstituteextendsitssincereappreciationtothemanypeoplewhosupportedand
collaboratedwithusonthisreport.WethankallmembersoftheBerkshireCountyEducationTask
Force,withspecialthankstotheTaskForcechair,JohnHockridge.NatKarnsandMattMaloyfromthe
BerkshireRegionalPlanningCommissionprovidedgeneroussupportrelatedtoaccessing,analyzing,and
interpretingdatasets.WealsothanktheadministratorsfromallBerkshireCountyschooldistrictswho
participatedininterviewsandprovideddata.
SteveEllis,seniorresearchmanagerinUMDIsAppliedResearchandProgramEvaluationgroup,
providedsupportforinitiatingandshapingthisproject.SusanStrate,seniorprogrammanagerinUMDIs
PopulationEstimatesProgram,providedsupportwithpopulationprojections.Projectfundingwas
providedbytheBerkshireCountyEducationTaskForce.
UniversityofMassachusettsDonahueInstitute
AppliedResearchandProgramEvaluationGroup
100VentureWay,Suite5
Hadley,MA010359462
UMassDonahueInstitute
AppliedResearchandProgramEvaluation
4135872400(phone)
4135872410(fax)
www.donahue.umassp.edu
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Contents
ExecutiveSummary.....................................................................................................................................iv
Introduction.................................................................................................................................................1
Methods.......................................................................................................................................................2
Findings........................................................................................................................................................3
LiteratureReviewEffectiveApproaches.........................................................................................3
SharedServices.........................................................................................................................5
SchoolDistrictConsolidation....................................................................................................6
EnrollmentTrendsandPopulationProjections..................................................................................8
CostandRevenueTrends.................................................................................................................11
MajorCostsandRevenues.....................................................................................................11
TaxLevyLimitsandCapacity..................................................................................................15
FunctionalExpendituresbyCategory.....................................................................................20
SelectedStudentPopulations................................................................................................24
SchoolChoice.........................................................................................................................25
BuildingCapacity....................................................................................................................27
StudentsPerTeacher.............................................................................................................29
TeacherSalaries......................................................................................................................31
EducationalProgramTrends............................................................................................................32
PastandFutureStrategiesforImprovingFinancialSustainability...................................................41
SharedServices.......................................................................................................................41
SchoolDistrictConsolidation..................................................................................................44
OtherCostSavingStrategies..................................................................................................48
EstimatingFiscalImpactsofChangeStrategies...............................................................................50
ConclusionsandRecommendations..........................................................................................................52
References.................................................................................................................................................58
AppendixAFirstAdministratorInterviewProtocol................................................................................62
AppendixBSecondAdministratorInterviewProtocol...........................................................................64
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ExecutiveSummary
TheBerkshireCountyEducationTaskForce(BCETFortheTaskForce)isagroupofcurrentandformer
schooladministratorsandeducators,schoolcommitteemembers,townadministrators,andlocal
businessleaderswhohaveconcludedthatthecountyspublicschoolsfacereductionsineducational
qualityduetodecliningstudentenrollmentandrevenuesthatarenotkeepingpacewithcosts.TheTask
Forceseekstoinformregionaldialogueandactionwith:(1)evidenceofwhethercurrentapproachesto
educationalservicedeliveryaresustainable,and(2)thepotentialbenefitsandrisksassociatedwith
variousstrategiestomaintainfinancialsustainabilityandeducationalquality.
TheTaskForcecontractedwiththeUMassDonahueInstitute(UMDI)toconductthefirstphaseofa
twophasestudytoprovideevidencerelevanttotheseissues.PhaseOneisintendedtoreviewand
confirmavailableevidencethatdecreasedenrollment,risingcosts,anddecliningorflatrevenuespose
challengestothequalityofeducationinBerkshireCounty.Inaddition,itisintendedtogenerateinsight
intothepotentialbenefitsandrisksofinterdistrictsharedserviceandschooldistrictconsolidation
strategies,aswellaswaysthatthecostsofthesestrategieshavebeenmodeled.PhaseTwowould
modelcostsassociatedwithsharedservicesandconsolidation.Theultimategoalofthisworkisto
developimplementablerecommendationsforBerkshireCountymunicipalities.
MethodsforthestudyincludedinterviewingtwogroupsofadministratorsrepresentingallBerkshire
Countyschooldistricts;numerouscommunicationswithTaskForcemembersandpersonnelfromthe
BerkshireRegionalPlanningCommission;andreviewandanalysisofrelevantliteratureanddatasets.A
briefsummaryoffindingsforeachofthestudysresearchquestionsarepresentednext.
LiteratureReviewEffectiveApproaches
Sharedservices.ThetwoprimarychangestrategiesbeingconsideredbytheTaskForceare
sharedservicesmodelsandschooldistrictconsolidation.Thereissubstantialevidencethatsharing
servicescansavemoney.SixcommondomainsforsharedservicesinMassachusettsincludespecial
educationprogramsandservices,professionaldevelopment,studenttransportation,educational
technology,cooperativepurchasing,andenergymanagement,butmanyotherdomainsforshared
servicesarepossibleandhavebeenpursuedalreadyinBerkshireCounty.EducationalServiceAgencies,
orCollaboratives,areacommonformalvehicleforsharedserviceswork.BerkshireCountyformerly
hadaneducationalcollaborative,andcurrenteffortsamonggroupsofBerkshireCountydistrictsinclude
exploringthepossibilityofdevelopinganothercollaborativeinthecounty.
Schooldistrictconsolidation.TheTaskForcesproposalsforschooldistrictconsolidationinclude
advancingformalpartnershipsbetweengeographicallyproximaldistrictsoradvancingreorganizationof
theentirecountyintoasuperregionofonetothreedistricts.Theliteraturesuggeststhatevery
potentialregionalizationeffortneedstobeassessedindividuallywithregardtoitslikelihoodofyielding
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educationalqualityimprovementsandcostsavings.Thesedesiredoutcomesarenotassured,duetoa
widerangeofeducational,financial,political,andlegalconsiderations.
Theliteraturedoesnotprovideaclearanswerwithregardtotheoptimalschooldistrictsizefor
maximizingcostefficiencyandacademicachievement.Substantiallongtermsavingsdueto
regionalizationhavebeendocumentedinruraldistrictsthatarethesizeofmanyBerkshireCounty
districts,althoughinsomecasesthiswasinacontextoftransitionalfinancialsupportandtechnical
assistancefromastatedepartmentofeducation.Substantialsavingshavealsobeenprojectedfor
similarconsolidations,suchasinastudyofFranklinCountyinwesternMassachusetts;theproposed
changeshavenottakenplace,however,apparentlydueinparttoalackoffinancialincentives.Other
studieshavereportedminimalcostsavingsorevencostincreaseswhendistrictswereconsolidated.
Recommendationsareofferedinrelationtomaximizingthebenefitsofpotentialregionalizationefforts.
EnrollmentTrendsandPopulationProjections
From2000to2015,theBerkshireCountypublicschoolsexperienceda22.3%declineinenrollment,
comparedtoa1.7%declinestatewide.Atthedistrictlevel,enrollmentdeclinesrangedfrom16%to38%
duringthistimeperiod.Fourpopulationmodelsprojectfurtherdeclineinthenext20years,withan
averageprojecteddeclineof11%from2015to2025andanadditional7%inthedecadeafterthat.
CostandRevenueTrends
Understandingcostandrevenuetrendsisanimportantsteptowardplanningstrategiestoimprove
educationalqualityandfiscalsustainability.Relevanttrendsarepresentedatthestate,county,school
district,andtownlevels.
Majorcostsandrevenues.From2005to2015,whilestudentenrollmentfellsubstantiallyinthe
county,bothexpendituresandrevenuesgrew.Totalexpenditures(27%)andtaxlevies(49%)grewfaster
thanChapter70revenues(23%).Chapter70fundinggrewfasterthanexpendituresduringthefirstfive
yearsandslowerthanexpendituresduringthesecondfiveyears.Substantialvariationwasevident
acrossschooldistricts,withtaxleviesgrowingmuchfasterthantotalexpendituresinsomedistricts,but
amuchsmallergapinotherdistricts.Despitethevariationacrossdistricts,thecountywidefigures
indicatetrendstowardsubstantiallydecliningenrollment,increasingexpendituresandtaxlevies,and
statefundingthatdoesnotkeepupwithdistrictexpenditures.
Taxlevylimitsandcapacity.Theaverageexcesslevycapacityperschooldistrictfellbyabout
6%from2015to2016,afterrising27%from2005to2010and35%from2010to2015.Averageexcess
levycapacityasapercentageofthemaximumlevylimitalsofellin2016afterrisingovertheprevious10
years.Thesetrendreversalssuggestthatmanymunicipalitiesareutilizingaportionoftheirremaining
taxingcapacityinordertosupporttheireducationalexpenditures.
Averagetotalassessedvalueincreased38%from2005to2010butthenfellby4%from2005to2010
andincreasedbylessthan1%from2015to2016.Overridecapacityalsofell4%from2015to2016,
indicatingfurtherstrainonschooldistrictsabilitytoraisetaxestosupporteducationalexpenditures.
Individualdistrictsdidnotallfollowthecountywidetrends.Forexample,averageexcesslevycapacity
increasedbyabout$215,000from2005to2016,butacrossdistrictsthisrangedfromadecreaseof$1.4
milliontoanincreaseof$4.3million.Widerangesalsooccurredforothertaxfigures,includingassessed
value,excesslevycapacity,andoverridecapacity.
Functionalexpendituresbycategory.Costtrendsarepresentedforschooldistrictexpenditures
inthe11functionalcategoriesreportedbythestate:administration;instructionalleadership;classroom
andspecialistteachers;otherteachingservices;professionaldevelopment;instructionalmaterials,
equipment,andtechnology;guidance,counseling,andtesting;pupilservices;operationsand
maintenance;insurance,retirementprograms,andother;andpaymentstooutofschooldistricts.
Countyandstatepercentagesarealsoprovidedineachcategory.
Trendsineachcategorycanbedeterminedwithineachdistrictfrom2005to2015,aswellasacross
districts,andbetweendistrict,county,andstateaverages.Forexample,thespendingonadministration
wassimilaratthecountyandstatelevelsinboth2005and2015,whereasspendingonguidance,
counseling,andtestingwasabout29%lowerinthecountythaninthestateinbothyears.Therewere
alsolargerelativechangesbetweenthecountyandthestateinsomecategories.Forexample,county
expendituresoninsuranceandretirementprogramswere3%lowerthanstateexpendituresin2005but
19%higherin2015.
Similarcomparisonscanbemadeatthedistrictlevel.Thetrendsforeachdistrictcouldserveasasource
ofinformationforstrategicplanningregardingfinancialsustainabilityandeducationalquality.Thiscould
includeunderstandinghowthefiguresreflectlocalcircumstances(e.g.,averageageofpersonnel,
infrastructureneeds),butalsowhethertheyadequatelyreflectlocalpriorities,needs,andgoals.
Selectedstudentpopulations.OnereasoncitedforrisingcostsinBerkshireCountydistrictswas
anincreaseinthenumberofstudentsfromlowincomefamilies,studentswithdisabilities,andEnglish
languagelearners.From2005to2015,thepercentageofstudentsfromlowincomefamiliesinBerkshire
Countyincreasedfrom27%to34%,comparedtoa1.4percentagepointdecreasestatewide.The
percentageofstudentswithdisabilitiesinBerkshireCountyincreasedfrom15%to18%,whichwas
twicethesizeofthestatewideincrease.ThepercentageofEnglishlanguagelearnersinBerkshire
Countydidnotincreasefrom2005to2015,whilethestatewiderateincreasedby3.4percentage
points.Changesinthesestudentpopulationsvariedsubstantiallyacrossdistrictswithinthecounty.
Schoolchoice.Manyadministratorsmentionedschoolchoicecostsorrevenuesasasignificant
influenceontheirfinancialstanding.Therewereclearwinnersandloserswithregardtoschool
choice,suchasanetgainof7%oftotalexpendituresforLenoxandanetlossof8%forSavoy.The
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absolutegainsorlossescanalsobelarge,suchasanetgainof195studentsandalmost$1millionfor
Lenox,andanetlossof344studentsandalmost$2millionforPittsfield.Anotabletrendwasthatsome
districtsexperiencedmuchgreaternetschoolchoicegainsorlossesin2015thanin2005.
Buildingcapacity.MostschoolbuildingsinBerkshireCountyarefilledbelowcapacity,which
increasesthelevelofbuildingcostsperstudent.Thecapacityproblemhasworsenedovertimeas
enrollmenthasdeclined,andthistrendwillcontinueasenrollmentdeclinesfurther.continuesto
decline.In2015,thepercentageofbuildingcapacitythatwasbeingutilizedrangedfrom31%to103%.
For2025,theprojectedrangeis16%to91%.DistrictadministratorsandTaskForcememberssaidthat
addressingtheissueofunusedbuildingcapacityneedstobepartofdistrictslongtermstrategyfor
financialsustainability.Thismightincludeclosingbuildings,findingadditionalusesforunusedspace,or
combiningbuildingcapacitywithotherdistrictsaspartofregionalization.
Studentsperteacher.AvailabledatadonotpermitcalculatingclasssizeinBerkshireCounty,but
itispossibletocalculatethenumberofstudentsperteacher,includingbothclassroomandspecialist
teachers.Thetrendisinthedirectionofahigherlevelofstaffingperstudentovertime.Thenumberof
studentsperteachergraduallydeclinedfrom12.8in2000to10.9in2015.Atemporaryreversalofthis
trendcanbeseenin2010,whenthenumberofstudentsperteacherincreasedto11.6.Thecounty
averagein2015was11studentsperteacher,anddistrictaveragesrangedfrom5to13.
BerkshireCountyhasfewerstudentsperteacherthanMassachusettsasawhole.Thisgapwidened
duringthepastdecade,withthecountyhaving15%fewerstudentsperteacherthanthestatewide
averagein2005,18%fewerin2010,and21%fewerin2015.Whetherthesechangesareseenas
negativeorpositivemaydependonwhethercostoreducationalqualityisbeingconsidered.
Teachersalaries.AverageteachersalarieshaveriseninBerkshireCountyfrom2005to2015ata
slightlyslowerratethaninthestateoverall.TheaverageteachersalaryinMassachusettswashigher
thaninBerkshireCountyby10%in2005andby12%in2015.TheaveragesalaryinBerkshireCountyin
the201415schoolyearwas$67,041,witharangefrom$40,903inFloridato$93,754inRichmond.
EducationalProgramTrends
Bothsetsofadministratorinterviewsinvestigatedchangesintheeducationalprogramsavailableto
BerkshireCountystudents.Thefirstsetofinterviews,whichaskedadministratorstocommenton
changesinthepastfiveyears,yieldedafairlyhighsenseofurgencyfromabouthalfofthedistricts
regardingprogramimpactsduetodecliningenrollmentand/orrevenueshortfalls.Thesecondsetof
interviewswaswithindividualswhohadbeenBerkshireCountyadministratorsforatleast15years,and
theseinterviewsyieldedamoreconsistentlyhighlevelofconcernaboutreducedprogramofferings.
Fiveyeartimeframe.Abouthalfofthedistrictsexpressedfairlylowurgencyaboutprogram
impactsinthepastfiveyearsduetodecliningenrollmentand/orrevenueshortfalls.Avarietyofreasons
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forthisoutlookwereapparent.Afewdistrictsareprojectedtohaveonlysmallenrollmentdeclinesor
evensmallincreasesfrom2015to2025,andothersanticipatedincreasesduetoschoolchoice,facilities
upgrades,orlargeincomingclasses.Similarly,manydistrictsreportedthatnegativeprogramimpactsin
thepastfiveyearsduetodecliningenrollmentand/orrevenueshortfallshadbeenminimal.
Incontrast,abouthalfofthedistrictsexpressedmoderatetoseriousconcerns,althoughtheconcerns
weretypicallymoreseriouswithregardtothenextfiveyearsthanthepastfiveyears.Onedistrictin
particularreportedurgentcircumstances,sayingAdamsCheshirewontbeabletosurviveonitsown.
Multipledistrictscharacterizedthemselvesasnearingatippingpoint,wherepastcutshadminimal
programimpactsbutfuturecutswouldaffectstudentsexperiencesmoredirectly,includinglargeclass
sizes,reducedofferingsofelectiveandAPcourses,andreductionsininstructionaltechnologyand
libraryservices.Abouthalfofthedistrictsanticipatedhavingtocutprogramsinthenextfiveyears.
Decliningstateandtaxrevenuesandincreasedpersonnelandbenefitscostswereprominentissuesfor
manyadministrators,andmultipledistrictsreportedthattheyhadreachedorwerenearingtheirtax
levyceilings.Additionalbudgetchallengesreportedbysomedistrictsincludedanetoutflowofschool
choicestudentsandhighorunanticipatedcostsforspecialeducationservices.
Fifteenyeartimeframe.Inthesecondsetofinterviews,fouroutoffiveadministratorssaid
thateducationalofferingshaddeclinedinthepast15years,andtheyratedthedeclinesfrommoderate
toextensive.Theseincludedcutsofmanystaffpositions;increasedclasssizes;reducedemphasison
scienceandsocialstudies;reductionsinforeignlanguage,vocational,physicaleducation,andsome
advancedcoreclasses;schedulingconflictsthatreducestudentscurricularoptions;andanincreasein
teachingmultipleclassesorclasslevelsinasingleclassroomatthesametime.
Threeadministratorssaidthatthelevelofacademicsupporthasnotdecreasedinthepast15years,
whiletworeportedthatthelevelofsupportfromacademicspecialistsandparaprofessionalshas
declined.Minimaltomoderatecutsinstudentsupportserviceswerereportedbythreeoutoffive
administrators,includingstaffreductionsandincreasedcaseloads.Allfiveadministratorsreported
minimaltoextensivereductionsinextracurricularorcocurricularprogramsandservices,mostlyatthe
secondarylevel,includingathletics,arts,music,drama,andoutdooractivityprograms.
FourofthefiveadministratorsbelievedthatthequalityofeducationalopportunityinBerkshireCounty
haddeclinedinthepast15years.Theysaidthatqualityhasbeenaffectedtremendously,thatthe
opportunitytograduateatthehighestpossiblelevelofacademicperformancehasbeensacrificed,
andthateducationalopportunitiesinBerkshireCountyareveryunequal.Theseadministrators
believedthatbothcollegeandcareeropportunitieshavediminished.Threeadministratorsfeltthat
declinesinthepast15yearshavereducedstudentscompetitivenessincollegeadmissions.
Courseofferingsandenrollment.TheTaskForcewantstoassesstrendsineducationalquality
bydocumentingchangesinschoolscourseofferingsovertime.Courseenrollmentdataforthe201516
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schoolyearprovidedbyBerkshireCountyhighschoolswillserveasabaselinefromwhichfuture
changescanbedocumented.SummariesareprovidedofthenumberofAPandhonorscoursesoffered
ineachschool,aswellasaveragecourseparticipationandclasssizes.Whenmultipleyearsofcourse
enrollmentdataareavailable,manyadditionalanalysescouldbeconductedtoassesschangesin
programofferingsovertime.UsingESEsStudentCourseScheduledatasettoconducttheselongitudinal
analysesmayincreaseefficiencyandfacilitatemeaningfulcomparisonsacrossdistricts;obtainingthese
datasetswouldrequirepermissionfromESEandindividualdistricts.
PastandFutureStrategiesforImprovingFinancialSustainability
Administratorsreportedthattheirdistrictshadalreadyengagedinnumerousstrategiestoreducecosts
andthattheyplannedtoimplementadditionalstrategiesinthefuture.Thesestrategiesarepresented
inrelationtosharedservices,schooldistrictconsolidation,andseveralotherdomains.
Sharedservices.SharedservicesarealreadytakingplaceamongsomeBerkshireCountydistricts
withregardtospecialeducationservices,healthcareservices,personnel,professionaldevelopment,
andathletics.Inaddition,twogroupsofdistrictsinsouthernandnorthernBerkshireCountyaremeeting
toplanfordeepeningimplementationofsharedservices.Onedistrictdescribedsavingmoneythrough
collaborationwithcommunitypartnersandothercityandcountyagencies.
Severaldistrictsdiscussedsharedservicearrangementsthattheyhopetocreateinthefuture,focused
onspecialeducationservices,informationtechnology,cafeteriamanagement,payrollservices,office
support,transportation,andcollaborativepurchasingofsupplies.Implementingsharedservices
arrangementsmoredeeplymayrequirechangestocollectivebargainingagreements.Multiple
administratorstalkedaboutincreasingsharedservicesasasteptowardlargercollaborativeefforts
withinthecounty,includingpossibleregionalizationand/orcreatinganeducationalcollaborative.
Schooldistrictconsolidation.Multipleadministratorsrecognizedthepotentialneedforfurther
consolidation,butnoonedescribeddeterminedcurrenteffortsinthisarea.Themostrecenteffortin
thecountythatsoughttochangeregionalaffiliationswasunsuccessful.Severaladministrators
expressedskepticismabouttheprospectsforconsolidation,whileotherssaidthatitwasoneofthe
strategiesthattheirdistrictsarecurrentlyexploring.
Othercostsavingstrategies.Administratorsalsoreportedcostsavingstrategiesthatinclude
reducingoutofdistrictspecialeducationplacements,utilizingnewenergycontractsorequipment,
closingunderutilizedschoolbuildings,combiningmultipleinstructionalandadministrativerolesinto
singlestaffpositions,seekinggrantfunding,updatingtechnology,relocatingadministrativeoffices,
reducingthenumberofbusroutes,consolidatingspecializedservicesintosingleschoolsinmultischool
districts,andutilizingadultvolunteers.
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EstimatingFiscalImpactsofChangeStrategies
Theliteraturereviewsoughttoidentifyexamplesofrigorousandcosteffectivemethodsforestimating
thefiscalimpactsofdistrictregionalizationandinterdistrictsharedservices.Suchexamplescouldserve
asafoundationforcarryingoutsubsequentphasesoftheTaskForceswork.Whilenohandbookon
howtocarryoutsuchestimateswasidentified,severalreportsofdistrictsregionalizationplanningwere
identifiedthatcouldadvanceBerkshireCountyseffortstoestimatepotentialfiscalimpacts.Estimation
ofsavingsfrominterdistrictsharedservicescouldbecarriedoutusingsimilarmethods,focusingon
specificcategoriesratherthantheentireschooldistrictbudget.Themethodsusedindifferentstudies
aresummarized,withdiscussionofimplicationsforapplyingsimilarapproachestoBerkshireCounty.
ConclusionsandRecommendations
ThePhaseOnestudywasintendedtoreviewandconfirmavailableevidencethatdecreasedenrollment,
risingcosts,anddecliningorflatrevenuesposechallengestothequalityofeducationinBerkshire
County.TheevidenceclearlyindicatesthatthequalityofeducationinBerkshireCountyisbeing
threatenedbythesefactors,withprogramimpactsalreadybeingexperiencedinsomedistrictsandsigns
ofpotentialprogramimpactsovertimeinmostdistricts.
ThePhaseOnestudywasalsointendedtogenerateinsightsinto(a)theimpactsofenrollment,cost,
revenue,andprogramtrends;and(b)thepotentialbenefitsandrisksofsharedservicesand
consolidationstrategies.Conclusionsandrecommendationsrelatedtotheseareasareofferedtoinform
discussionandactionplanningbytheTaskForceandotherstakeholders.
Impactsofenrollment,cost,revenue,andprogramtrends.Trendsdescribedinthereportthat
maycontinueinupcomingyearsinclude(a)risingschooldistrictcoststhatarenotfullyoffsetbystate
fundingoradditionallocaltaxrevenues;(b)infrastructurecoststhatbecomehigherperstudentas
enrollmentdeclines;(c)increasingnumbersofhighneedsstudents;(d)growingimpactsoftheschool
choiceprocess;and(e)personnelcoststhataregrowingfasterthantotalschooldistrictexpenditures.If
recenteconomictrendscontinue,therewillbesubstantialadditionalstrainonschooldistrictfinances.
Stakeholderswillpromoteaddressingthesestrainsthroughacombinationofincreasedtaxationand
stateprovidedrevenues,reducedexpenses,andgreaterefficiencies.
Forsomemunicipalities,theabilitytoincreaserevenuethroughtaxationislimitedbylevyceilingsand
overridecapacity.Asaresult,somedistrictsmayreduceacademic,extracurricular,and/orsupport
services.Tomoderatetheimpactsofthesereductions,somedistrictsarelikelytoincreaseclasssizes,
reducethenumberofsectionsoffered,offermultiplecoursesorcourselevelsinasingleclassroom,
increasetheuseoftechnologyassistedacademicwork,combineextracurricularactivitiesacrossschools
ordistricts,andinstituteorincreaseparticipationfees.Severaladministratorssaidthatchangessuchas
thesehavereducedandwillcontinuetohavenegativeimpactsonstudentengagement,educational
quality,andstudentscareeroptionsandcollegeadmissionsprospects.Mostdistrictswillalsocontinue
andextendthediversestrategiestheyhaveusedtoreducecostsinthepast,asalreadydescribed.
Sharedservices.Sharedservicestrategiesappeartobepromisingtopursueimmediately,
althoughitisessentialtoassessanticipatedbenefitstoeducationalqualityandestimatetheextentof
costsavingsthatcanberealized.Theliteraturesuggeststhatsavingswillbemeaningfulbutnot
sufficienttofullyresolvemanydistrictsfiscalchallenges.Extensiveconsiderationsand
recommendationsrelatedtofuturesharedservicesworkareofferedinthemainreport.Theseinclude
documentingsharedservicesandcostsavingseffortsalreadyhappeninginthecountyforpossible
expansion,assessingthepotentialroleofeducationalcollaboratives,investigatingimplicationsfor
collectivebargainingagreements,andidentifyingexistingstateincentivesoradvocatingfornew
incentives.
Districtconsolidation.Thisstrategyappearstofacegreaterchallengestoimplementationthan
sharedservicesstrategies,givenmixedevidenceofeducationalandfiscalbenefits,aswellasevidence
thatstakeholdersinMassachusettsandnationallyareoftenreluctanttoregionalize.Thiscontext
suggeststhatPhaseTwoshouldbeseenasreflectedintheTaskForcesgoalstatementsasan
opportunitytoexplorethepotentialmeritsandfeasibilityofspecificregionalizationoptions.
Extensiveconsiderationsandrecommendationsrelatedtoregionalizationeffortsareofferedinthemain
report.TheseincludestrategiesforengagingnumerousstakeholdergroupsregardingtheTaskForces
findingsandtheirimplicationsforeducationalcostsandqualityinBerkshireCounty,aswellasexploring
therelativefeasibilityandpotentialbenefitsoftheTaskForcestwoproposedregionalization
approaches:(1)advancingformalpartnershipsbetweengeographicallyproximaldistricts,or(2)
advancingreorganizationoftheentirecountyintoasuperregionofonetothreedistricts.Thisprocess
couldincludeutilizingthestatesdistrictcapacityassessmenttooltohelpdistrictsassesstheirfuture
risksandtohelpmultiplestakeholdersassesstherelativeurgencyofeachdistrictssituation.
Additionalfactorstoreviewforeachdistrictcouldincludethelevelofspendingindifferentfunctional
categories(assummarizedinthisreport),costsassociatedwithmaintainingexistingschoolbuildings
versusclosingbuildings,likelychangesinschoolchoiceenrollment,andthelikelyimpactsofcollective
bargainingagreementsonregionalizationefforts.Finally,itmaybebeneficialtocollaborateandengage
inadvocacyeffortswithstategovernmenttosupportregionalizationasastrategyforimproving
financialsustainabilityandeducationalqualityinBerkshireCounty.
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Introduction
TheBerkshireCountyEducationTaskForce(BCETFortheTaskForce)isagroupofcurrentandformer
schooladministratorsandeducators,schoolcommitteemembers,townadministrators,andlocal
businessleaderswhohaveconcludedthattheBerkshireCountypublicschoolsarefacingcurrentand
futurereductionsineducationalprogramsduetodecliningstudentenrollmentandrevenuesthatare
notkeepingpacewithcosts(BCETF,2015).TheTaskForceisworkingtodeveloprecommendationsto
supportallschooldistrictsinsustainingqualityeducationinBerkshireCounty.
TheTaskForceseekstoinformregionaldialogueandactionwith:(1)evidenceofwhethercurrent
approachestoeducationalservicedeliveryaresustainable,and(2)thepotentialbenefitsandrisks
associatedwithvariousstrategiestomaintainfinancialsustainabilitywhileprovidingqualityeducational
programming.
TheTaskForcecontractedwiththeUMassDonahueInstitute(UMDI)toconductthefirstphaseofa
twophasestudytoprovideevidencerelevanttotheseissues.PhaseOneisintendedtoreviewand
confirmavailableevidencethatdecreasedenrollment,risingcosts,anddecliningorflatrevenuespose
challengestothequalityofeducationinBerkshireCounty.Inaddition,itisintendedtogenerateinsight
intothepotentialbenefitsandrisksofinterdistrictsharedserviceandconsolidationstrategieswhen
usedtoimproveefficiencyandsustainabilityofpublicschooldistricts.
PhaseTwoofthestudywouldmodelcostsassociatedwiththefollowingthreechangestrategies:
Tier1.
Advancecollaborativeandsharedservicessolutionssuchascooperativepurchasing,
transportation,andsharedspecialeducationprogramming.
Tier2.
Advanceformalpartnershipsbetweengeographicallyproximaldistricts.
Tier3.
Advancereorganizationoftheentirecountyintoasuperregionofonetothreedistricts.
Thesemodelswouldprovideanestimateoftheprogrammingandresourcesthatcouldbeprovidedto
studentsineachscenario.Theultimategoalofthiswork,attheendofthesecondphase,is
implementablerecommendationsthatcouldbeconsideredbyBerkshireCountyschooldistrictsand
municipalities.
PhaseOneofthestudywasguidedbythefollowingresearchquestions,whichareaddressedinthis
report:
Q1.
Whatdoesavailableliteraturesuggestarethemosteffectiveapproachestoproviding
financialsustainabilityofeducationalservicedeliverywhilesustaining(orenhancing)
educationalqualityincontextssimilartoBerkshireCounty?
Q2.
Whatstudiesareavailable,ifany,thatcouldinformasecondphaseofthecurrentstudyin
whicheconomicbenefitsandrisksofinterdistrictcostsharingorconsolidationinBerkshire
Countyaremodeled?
Q3.
Whattrendsareevidentwithregardtostudentenrollmentinpublicschooldistrictsin
BerkshireCounty?
Q4.
Whattrendsareevidentwithregardtothecostsofeducationalservicesatthedistrictlevel
inBerkshireCounty?
Q5.
Whattrendsareevidentwithregardtostateandlocalrevenuestosupporteducational
servicedeliveryatthedistrictlevelinBerkshireCounty?
Q6.
Whattrendsareevidentwithregardtochangesinthediversityorrangeofeducational
programsavailabletostudents?
Q7.
Whatarethelikelyimpactsoftrendsinstudentenrollment,costs,andrevenueson
educationalandnoneducationalservicesprovidedbypublicschooldistrictsinBerkshire
Countyoverthenextfiveyears?
Q8.
Whatapproacheshavealreadybeenpursuedtocreateamorefinanciallysustainable
educationalsysteminBerkshireCounty?Whatotherapproachesarealreadyplanned?
Methods
ThestudysmethodsincludedinterviewingtwogroupsofadministratorsfromBerkshireCountyschool
districts,aswellasreviewandanalysisof:
HighschoolcourseenrollmentdataprovidedbyBerkshireCountyschooldistricts;
PreviousfindingsfromBCETFandtheBerkshireRegionalPlanningCommission(BRPC),aswellas
numerousmeetings,calls,andemailswithBCETFmembersandBRPCpersonnel;
Publiclyavailabledatasources,primarilyfromtheMassachusettsDepartmentofElementary
andSecondaryEducation(ESE)andtheMassachusettsDepartmentofRevenue(DOR);
DatafromtheUMDIPopulationEstimatesProgram;and
Literaturefromacademic,government,private,andnonprofitsources,aswellasblogs,
websites,andnewsmedia.
ProtocolsforthetwosetsofadministratorinterviewsweredevelopedincollaborationwithTaskForce
members.TheTaskForcerequestedforthefirstsetofinterviewstobeconductedwithrepresentatives
from13localandregionalschooldistrictsthatcollectivelyincludedallBerkshireCountytownsand
cities.ThechairoftheTaskForce,JohnHockridge,emailedthesuperintendent,schoolcommitteechair,
andhighschoolprincipal(s)fromeachdistrictdescribingthepurposeoftheinterview,providingacopy
oftheinterviewprotocol,andaskingatleastoneparticipantfromeachdistricttoparticipateinahalf
hourtelephoneinterview.UMDIthenemailedthesameindividualstoscheduletheinterviews,which
tookplaceinMayandJune2016.Insomecases,thesuperintendentinvitedadditionalindividualsto
participateinthecall.
Alldistrictsparticipatedintheinterview,including10superintendentsand12principals.Table1liststhe
interviewees,andtheinterviewprotocolisprovidedinAppendixA.Whileeveryinterviewincludedallof
thequestionsintheprotocol,manyadditionalquestionsrelevanttothestudysgoalswereaskedbased
onstatementsmadebytheintervieweesortopicsthathadarisenininterviewswithotherdistricts.
Forthefirstadministratorinterview,theTaskForcehadrequestedafocusontrendsrelatedtothepast
fiveyearsandthenextfiveyears.AfterreviewingfindingsinUMDIsinterimreport,1TaskForce
membersconcludedthatlookingbackmorethanfiveyearswasneededtocapturethechangesinthe
BerkshireCountypubliceducationsystemthattheywereseekingtodocument.Therefore,theyasked
UMDItoconductasecondsetofphoneinterviewswithfiveindividualswhohadworkedaspublic
schooladministratorsinBerkshireCountyforatleast15years.TaskForcemembersselectedfive
intervieweeswhohadworkedinarangeoftownsandadministrativerolesandcalloremailedthemto
requesttheirparticipation.UMDIthenemailedtheintervieweestoschedulehalfhourphonecalls,
whichtookplaceinSeptember2016.Thefiveintervieweeshadworkedaspublicschooladministrators
inBerkshireCountypublicschoolsforanaverageof21years,witharangeof15to32years.Table2lists
theinterviewees,andtheinterviewprotocolisprovidedinAppendixB.
Findings
Findingsarepresentedbelowforeachoftheresearchquestions.Majorsectionsincludealiterature
reviewofeffectivefiscalandeducationalapproaches;enrollment,cost,revenue,andeducational
programtrends;strategiesthatdistrictshaveusedandplantousetoimprovefinancialsustainability
whileimprovingeducationalquality;andestimatingthefiscalimpactsofchangestrategies.Theresearch
questionregardingimpactsofenrollment,cost,andrevenuetrendsisaddressedthroughoutthereport
andintheconclusionsandrecommendationssection.
1.LiteratureReviewEffectiveApproaches
TheTaskForceseekstoprovideinformationabouteffectiveapproachestoprovidingfinancially
sustainableeducationalservicedeliverywhilesustainingeducationalquality.Membershaverepeatedly
emphasizedthatthesecondpartofthisquestionhowtoprovidethestrongestpossibleeducationto
studentsinBerkshireCountypublicschooldistrictsisoftheutmostimportance.Therefore,while
financialissuesmustabsolutelybeaddressed,educationalqualityistheirtoppriority.
1
Thefindingspresentedintheinterimreportareintegratedintothisfinalreport.
Table1:FirstAdministratorInterview,IntervieweesbyDistrict
Interviewees
District
KristenGordonSuperintendent
JeremiahAmesPrincipal,HoosacValleyRegionalHighSchool
AdamsCheshire
PeterDillonSuperintendent
MarianneYoungPrincipal,MonumentMountainRegionalHS
BerkshireHills
LaurieCasnaSuperintendent
CentralBerkshire
JoAnnAustinSuperintendent
FarmingtonRiver
AlfredSkrockiSuperintendent
GreggBrighentiPrincipal,LeeMiddle&HighSchool
Lee
MichaelKnybelPrincipal,LenoxMemorialMiddle&HighSchool
Lenox
MaryMacDonaldPrincipal,Mt.GreylockRegionalHighSchool
Mt.Greylock
AmyMeehanPrincipal,DruryHighSchool
NorthAdams
JamesBrosnanSuperintendent
JustinKratzPrincipal,McCannTechnicalHighSchool
NorthernBerkshireVocTech
JonLevSuperintendent
NorthernBerkshireUnion
JasonMcCandlessSuperintendent
MatthewBishopPrincipal,PittsfieldHighSchool
JohnVosburghPrincipal,TaconicHighSchool
Pittsfield
WilliamCameronInterimSuperintendent
MonicaZaninPrincipal,RichmondConsolidatedSchool
TracyTierneyPrincipal,HancockSchool
ShakerMountainUnion
DavidHastingsSuperintendent
GlennDevotiPrincipal,Mt.EverettRegionalHighSchool
SouthernBerkshire
Table2:SecondAdministratorInterview,IntervieweesbyDistrict
Interviewees
CurrentandFormerBerkshireDistricts
AlbertSkrockiPrincipal,Superintendent
AdamsCheshire,Lee
JimStankiewiczPrincipal,Superintendent
CentralBerkshire
BillTravisPrincipal,Superintendent
Pittsfield,Mt.Greylock,Richmond
RobertVaughanPrincipal,DSACFacilitator
Lenox
MarianneYoungPrincipal,Superintendent
BerkshireHills,Lenox
ThetwoprimarychangestrategiesbeingconsideredbytheTaskForcearesharedservicesmodelsand
schooldistrictconsolidation.Thefindingsinthissectionfocusonthosetwostrategies,basedona
reviewoftheliterature.PerspectivesofBerkshireCountyadministratorsonthesetwostrategies,
includingpastandplannedactions,arepresentedinasubsequentsectionofthereport.
SharedServices
Sharingservicesbetweendistrictsisastrategytobenefitfromeconomiesofscaleintermsofboth
programcostandquality.Insharedservicesarrangements,schoolanddistrictpersonnel,oftenfrom
neighboringdistricts,agreetosharepersonnel,equipment,curriculum,andotherresourcesneededto
provideprogramsandservices.Thisapproachallowslocalschoolboardsandadministratorstobenefit
frominterdistrictcollaborationwithoutformallyconsolidatingwiththepartneringdistricts.Sixcommon
domainsforsharedservicesinMassachusettsincludespecialeducationprogramsandservices,
professionaldevelopment,studenttransportation,educationaltechnology,cooperativepurchasing,and
energymanagement(Stanley,2005).
Districtscanshareservicesbothformallyandinformally.Informalsharingconsistsofmutualaid
agreementsbetweendistrictsthatallowdistrictsoftensmall,ruraldistrictstoshareassetsandavoid
duplication(DeloitteResearch,2005).Informalarrangementshavethepotentialadvantagesoflowcost,
flexibility,andresponsivenesstodistrictsneeds.However,fordistrictswithlimitedadministrativestaff,
thesearrangementscanbeburdensometoestablishandmaintain(DuncombeandYinger,2007).One
waytomanagetheadministrativeburdenisfordifferentdistrictstotaketheleadoncoordinating
differentsharedservices(Shakrani,2010).
AnotherapproachisformalsharingofservicesthroughEducationalServiceAgencies,whichin
Massachusettsarecallededucationalcollaboratives.Thesearedefinedaspublic,multiservice
organizationsgovernedandauthorizedbystatelaw(MGLChapter40,Section4E)todevelop,manage,
andprovideservicesandprogramstomemberschooldistricts(Carletonetal.,2009).BerkshireCounty
formerlyhadaneducationalcollaborative,theSouthernBerkshireEducationalCollaborative(SBEC),
whichclosedin2011(Smith,2012).
AttheJuly2016TaskForcemeeting,membersnotedthatSBECwastooexpensiveformanydistricts,
bothlargerandsmallerones,andthatsmallerdistrictshadtroubleseeinghowitwouldbenefitthem.
Somedistrictsalsofeltthatparticipatinginthecollaborativeaddedaburdensimilartohavinganother
centralofficetomanage.TaskForcememberssaidthatacollaborativemaybemorebeneficialifoffered
onafeeforserviceratherthanamembershipbasis,andthattheCollaborativeforEducationalServices,
locatedinNorthampton,hasofferedtoservethatroleforBerkshireCountyschooldistrictssolongas
theyarenotrequiredtoopenaphysicalofficeinBerkshireCounty.
Thereissubstantialevidencethatsharingservicescansavemoney(RooneyandAugenblick,2009).The
MassachusettsOrganizationofEducationalCollaborativesreportsthattheir28collaborativeshave
savedparticipatingschooldistrictsandmunicipalitiesmillionsofdollarsthroughspecialeducation
transportationservices,managementofMedicaidbilling,professionaldevelopmentprograms,and
cooperativepurchasingofpaperandofficesupplies,softwareandhardwaretechnology,heatingfuels,
andelectricity.Theyarguethatcollaborativeshavethepotentialtosavemuchgreatersumsthanare
beingrealizedcurrently(Enerson,2009).
SchoolDistrictConsolidation
Districtconsolidationorregionalizationistheprocessofcombiningmultipleschooldistrictstoforma
singleschooldistrict.Aswithsharedservicestrategies,theimpetusforconsolidationistypicallyto
sustainorimprovethequalityofeducationalprograms,sustainorreducecosts,orboth.Thedecisionto
consolidateisalwayscomplicated,duetoawiderangeofeducational,financial,political,andlegal
considerations.InareviewofdistrictconsolidationinMassachusettsbytheDepartmentofElementary
andSecondaryEducation,theauthorsconcluded,
Proposingregionalizationasbothasolutionandanopportunityrequiresan
understandingofexistinglegalandfinancialarrangementsandtheresources,pressures,
andtrendsinspecificdistricts.Nosingleissuemotivatesdistrictstoregionalize,andno
singleproblemisclearlysolvedthroughthisapproach.Recentplanningstudieson
specificregionalizationpossibilitiesidentifiedthesameobstaclesthathavecausedso
manysmalldistrictstomaintaintheirindependence(Carletonetal.,2009,p.10).
FromtheTaskForcesperspective,therationalebehindconsolidationinBerkshireCountywouldhave
twopurposes:toimproveeducationalopportunitiesforstudents,andtorealizeeconomiesofscale
throughmoreefficientuseofresources.Moreover,ifconsolidationsucceededinrealizingeconomiesof
scale,additionalresourceswouldbecomeavailabletoimproveeducationalopportunities.SomeTask
Forcemembershavenotedthatfurtherregionalizationofthecounty,aswellaspossiblyconsolidating
someexistingschools,couldincreasethebreadthanddepthofcoursesoffered.Itcouldalsoenable
additionalcoursesectionstobeoffered,therebyreducingschedulingconflictsthatpreventsome
studentsfromtakingthecoursestheywanttotake.Thisissueisdiscussedfurtherintheprogramtrends
section.
Acommonargumentinfavorofconsolidatingsmall,ruraldistrictsisthatsmalldistrictshavehighper
studentcostsduetoduplicationofadministrative,operational,infrastructure,andpersonnelcosts.This
questionhasbeenstudiedextensively,buttheliteraturedoesnotprovideaclearanswerwithregardto
optimalschooldistrictsizeintermsofcostsavingsandacademicachievement.
Inoneofthemostrigorousstudies(DuncombeandYinger,2007,2010),theauthorslooked
retrospectivelyatcostsavingsin12pairsofruraldistrictsthatregionalizedinNewYorkfrom1987to
1995.TheyfoundsubstantiallongtermsavingsindistrictsthatarethesizeofmanyBerkshireCounty
districts.AkeycaveatisthatthestateofNewYorkprovidedlargeincentivesovermanyyearstooffset
increasedcapitalcostsassociatedwithregionalizing;theabsenceofsuchincentiveswouldhavereduced
thefiscalbenefitsconsiderably.Thestatealsoprovidedintensiveguidanceandinterventionrelatedto
theregionalizationprocess.Potentialsavingsweregreatestfordistrictsof300students,butsignificant
savingswerealsofoundfordistrictsof1,500students.IftransferabletoBerkshireCounty,thesefindings
couldberelevanttoalldistrictsotherthanPittsfield(whichhasmorethan5,000students).
AstudyofFranklinCountyinwesternMassachusetts,amostlyruralregionwithmanysimilaritiesto
BerkshireCounty,alsofoundthatsubstantialcostsavingscouldberealizedbyconsolidatingintoone,
three,orsixdistricts(Croninetal.,2009).Commentingonthestudy,personnelfromtheMassachusetts
DepartmentofElementaryandSecondaryEducationwrote,Amajorfindingofthestudywasthat
[forming]alargedistrictcouldbothreduceadministrativecostsandstrengthencentraloffice
management(Carletonetal.,2009,p.10).Theyadded,Withoutfinancialincentives,however,the
districtshavedonelittletopursuethisfurther(p.10).
Incontrast,numerousstudiesreportminimalcostsavingsorevencostincreaseswhendistrictswere
consolidated.InananalysisofsmallruralschooldistrictsinTexas,CooleyandFloyd(2013)paired
districtsinvolvedinconsolidationwithsimilardistrictsnotinvolvedinconsolidation.Theyconcluded
that,fortheabsorbingdistrict,perpupilcostsincreasedandstudentachievementdecreased.Ina
studyofcostsavingsthroughconsolidationforthestateofMichigan,Coulson(2007)concludedthatthe
theoreticalmaximumsavingsfromconsolidatingallofthesmalldistrictsinthestatewasroughly$31
million.Moreover,theactualsavingswerelikelytobesubstantiallysmaller,becauseofthedifficultyof
creatingdistrictsoftheoptimalsizeof2,900studentsthatwaspredictedbyhisstatisticalmodel.
Despitethemanystudiesonthistopic,thereisnoconsensusontheidealdistrictsizetominimizecost
perstudentormaximizestudentachievement(RooneyandAugenblick,2009).
Inarecentreviewofdistrictconsolidationresearch,theNationalEducationPolicyCenterconcluded,
Contemporaryresearchdoesnotsupportclaimsaboutthewidespreadbenefitsof
consolidation.Theassumptionsbehindsuchclaimsaremostoftendangerous
oversimplifications.Forexample,policymakersmaybelieveWellsavemoneyifwe
reducethenumberofsuperintendentsbyconsolidatingdistricts;however,larger
districtsneedandusuallyhiremoremidleveladministrators.Researchalsosuggests
thatimpoverishedregionsinparticularoftenbenefitfromsmallerschoolsanddistricts,
andtheycansufferirreversibledamageifconsolidationoccurs.Forthesereasons,
decisionstodeconsolidateorconsolidatedistrictsarebestmadeonacasebycase
basis.(Howleyetal.,2001,p.3).
Clearlytheconsiderationsinplanningforpotentialregionalizationarenumerousandcomplex.While
theseconsiderationsmaybesobering,theyareimportanttotakeintoaccountinserviceofachieving
theTaskForcesgoals.Inreviewingthefindingsfromagroupof12regionalizationplanninggrantsfrom
ESE,Carletonetal.(2009)concluded,Almostallstudiescompletedtodatehaveidentifiedmajor
obstaclestoregionalization.Theseobstacleshavegenerallybeenidentifiedmanytimesinthepastand
mighthavebeenforeseenandaddressedinsomefashion(p.10).
Aresourcethatprovidesdetailedfindingsaboutmanyoftheseobstaclesthatmayneedtobeaddressed
forsuccessfulregionalizationwasprovidedbyNewJerseysAssemblyTaskForceonSchoolDistrict
Regionalization(1999).Asampleoftheirextensivefindingsincludes:
Thedisproportionatedistributionofcostsamongconstituentmunicipalitiesinregionalized
districtsisamajordisincentivetoregionalization.
Smaller,moreaffluentcommunitiesinregionalschooldistricts,whicharelockedintopaying
basedontheirequalizedvaluation,asopposedtoonaperpupilbasis,maywinduppaying
morethanwhattheyotherwisewouldpayinanonregionalizeddistrict.
Representationonregionalschoolboardscanalsobeadisincentiveforregionalization.Small
communitieswithlimitedrepresentationmaynotseeanadvantagetoregionalizing(p.i).
ThefindingsfromtheNewJerseystudyleadtoadetailedsetofrecommendationsfordistrictsand
statesengagedinregionalizationprocesses.TheseandothersuggestionsemergingfromthePhaseOne
studyaredescribedintheconclusionsandrecommendationssectionbelow.
2.EnrollmentTrendsandPopulationProjections
EnrollmentingradesK12inBerkshireCountypublicschoolsdeclinedby22.3%from2000to2015,a
lossof4,560students(Figure1andTable3).2Massachusettsexperiencedamuchsmaller1.7%decline
duringthattimeperiod.Atthedistrictlevel,enrollmentdeclinesrangedfrom16.3%forLenoxto37.7%
forNorthAdams.TwosingleschooldistrictsBerkshireArtsandTechnologyCharterandNorthern
BerkshireRegionalVocationalTechnicalweregrowingduringthistimeperiodandexperienced
substantialincreasesinenrollment.
BasedonESEschooldistrictprofiles.
Figure1:BerkshireCountyPublicSchoolEnrollment,
20002015
20,471
18,952
2000
17,344
2005
15,911
2010
2015
Table3:BerkshireCountyEnrollmentandEnrollmentChange bySchoolDistrict,200015
District
AdamsCheshire
BerkshireArtsTechCharter
BerkshireHills
CentralBerkshire
Clarksburg
FarmingtonRiver
Florida
Hancock
Lanesborough
Lee
Lenox
MountGreylock
NorthAdams
N.BerkshireVocTech
Pittsfield
Richmond
Savoy
SouthernBerkshire
Williamstown
BerkshireCounty
State
K12Enrollment
SY00
1,928
0
1,612
2,363
220
154
104
51
274
876
843
833
2,196
451
6,734
184
44
1,072
532
SY05
SY10
EnrollmentChange
SY15
200005
200510 201015
200015
1,740
64
1,381
2,192
199
162
99
44
272
854
828
730
1,935
468
6,325
184
56
948
471
1,507
216
1,352
1,933
175
121
103
30
244
819
804
636
1,520
500
5,930
162
35
865
392
1,308
334
1,314
1,657
168
104
82
33
194
665
706
548
1,369
500
5,581
145
35
740
428
9.8%
NA
14.3
7.2
9.5
5.2
4.8
13.7
0.7
2.5
1.8
12.4
11.9
3.8
6.1
0.0
27.3
11.6
11.5
13.4%
237.5
2.1
11.8
12.1
25.3
4.0
31.8
10.3
4.1
2.9
12.9
21.4
6.8
6.2
12.0
37.5
8.8
16.8
13.2%
54.6
2.8
14.3
4.0
14.0
20.4
10.0
20.5
18.8
12.2
13.8
9.9
0.0
5.9
10.5
0.0
14.5
9.2
32.2%
NA
18.5
29.9
23.6
32.5
21.2
35.3
29.2
24.1
16.3
34.2
37.7
10.9
17.1
21.2
20.5
31.0
19.5
20,471 18,952
972,260 975,911
17,344
957,053
15,911
955,844
7.4%
0.4%
8.5%
1.9%
8.3%
0.1%
22.3%
1.7%
FourpopulationmodelsthreedevelopedbytheUMDIPopulationEstimatesProgram,andone
developedbyBRPCprojectfurtherdeclineintheschoolagepopulationinthenext20years.These
projectionscouldbealteredbychangesinbirth,death,and/ormigrationtrends.
UMDIsfirstmodelwasdevelopedfromitspubliclyavailableVintage2015series,basedonAmerican
CommunitySurveygrossmigrationlevelsforMassachusettsregionsandpublishedfortheentirestate.
UMDIssecondmodelusesacohortchangeratio(CCR)approach(amodifiedHamiltonPerrymethod),
andUMDIsthirdmodelusesaCohortSurvivalMethod(CSM)approach;bothofthesemodelsrelyon
townleveltrendsnotcontrolledtolargerregionalprojections.AllthreeUMDImodelsassumeastatus
quoapproachtotrendsexperiencedsince2000,withtheCCRandCSMmodelslimitedtotrendsduring
justthe20002010period,andtheV2015publicseriesincorporatingsomelaterestimates.BRPCs
populationprojectionsarebasedondatafromtheU.S.CensusBureau(BRPC2013).Figure2shows
projectionsforallfourpopulationmodelsfrom2010to2040forages5to19.3
Figure2:BerkshireCountyPopulationProjections20102040,
Ages519
24,000
23,000
22,000
21,000
20,000
19,000
18,000
17,000
16,000
15,000
Census2010 Projection
2015
UMDIV2015
Projection
2020
UMDICCR
Projection
2025
Projection
2030
UMDICSM
Projection
2035
Projection
2040
BRPC2013
From2015to2025,thefourpopulationmodelsestimateadeclineoffrom7.1%to15.7%forthe
populationaged5to19yearsold,withanaverageprojecteddeclineof10.8%(Table4).Duringthat
sametimeperiod,aschoolenrollmentmodelcreatedbyBRPC(2015)hasestimatedadeclineof11%in
BerkshireCountypublicschoolenrollment.Thisequalstheaverageofthefourpopulationestimates
showninthetable.Whiletheage5to19populationdoesnotmatchtheK12publicschoolpopulation
exactly,thetwoarecloselyrelated.Insummary,asubstantialdeclineinBerkshireCountypublicschool
enrollmentislikelyinthenextdecade.
3
Ages5to19areusedbecausetheUMDIprojectionsareproducedfor5yearagegroupsincluding0to4,5to9,10to14,15
to19,etc.
10
Forthesubsequentdecade,2025to2035,thisdeclineinpublicschoolenrollmentislikelytobe
sustainedortoincrease.Thefourmodelsestimateanage5to19populationincreaseof0.7%toa
declineof10.2%duringthatperiod,withanaverageprojecteddeclineof6.5%.
Table4:ProjectedBerkshireCountyPopulation,Ages5to19,201535
Model
Projection Projection Projection %Change
%Change
2015
2025
2035
201525
202535
UMDIV2015
19,786
18,374
18,500
7.1%
0.7%
UMDICCR
21,822
19,214
17,603
12.0
8.4
UMDICSM
21,288
19,507
17,524
8.4
10.2
BRPC2013
21,838
18,408
17,005
15.7
7.6
Average
21,184
18,876
17,658
10.8%
6.5%
3.CostandRevenueTrends
Understandingcostandrevenuetrendsisanimportantsteptowardplanningstrategiestoimprove
educationalqualityandfiscalsustainability.Thissectionfirstpresentstrendsrelatedtototalschool
districtexpenditures,taxlevylimitsandcapacity,andChapter70funding.Thenitpresentstrends
regardingseveralfactorsthatcompriseorinfluenceexpenditures,includingcostsbyfunctionalcategory
(e.g.,administration,professionaldevelopment),ratesofstudentsinselectedpopulations(e.g.,
studentswithdisabilities,studentsfromlowincomefamilies),schoolchoicerevenue,buildingcapacity,
studentteacherratios,andteachersalaries.
Majorcostsandrevenues.Changesinenrollment,costs,andrevenuesatthecountylevelfrom
200515areshowninFigure3.4Theexpenditurescolumnreflectstotalschooldistrictexpendituresas
reportedtothestate.5TheChapter70fundingcolumnreflectstheChapter70revenuesprovidedbythe
statedirectlytoeachschooldistrictplusanyamountsprovidedtoindividualtownswithinregional
districts.6Duringthis10yearperiod,enrollmentfellsubstantially,whilebothexpendituresand
revenuesgrew.Totalexpenditures(27%)andtaxlevies(49%)grewfasterthanChapter70revenues
(23%).
Thistimeperiodwasselectedbecauseschoolyear200405isthefirstyearforwhichfinancialinformationisprovidedinthe
ESEschooldistrictprofiles,andschoolyear201415isthemostrecentyearforwhichsomeofthedatainthisreportis
available.
http://profiles.doe.mass.edu/state_report/ppx.aspx.
http://www.doe.mass.edu/finance/chapter70/.Chapter70fundsprovidedtothethreetownsthatdonotoperateaschool
districtorbelongtoaregionaldistrictwerecombinedwithChapter70fundsprovidedtothedistrictstowhichtheyprimarily
sendtheirstudentsTyringhamwithLee,MountWashingtonwithSouthernBerkshire,andNewAshfordwithLanesborough
(50%)andMountGreylock(50%).
11
Figure3:BerkshireCountyPublicSchools
CostandRevenueTrends,200515
49%
27%
23%
Expenditures
Chapter70
Funding
16%
Enrollment
TaxLevy
MostoftheincreaseinChapter70fundingtookplaceduringthefirsthalfofthe10yearperiod,as
showninFigures4and5,whichshow200510and201015separately.Duringbothtimeperiods,
enrollmentfellsubstantially,andbothexpendituresandtaxleviesincreasedsubstantially.Chapter70
fundinggrewfasterthanexpendituresduringthefirstfiveyearperiodandslowerthanexpenditures
duringthesecondfiveyearperiod.7
25%
15%
19%
9%
Enrollment
Expenditures
Chapter70
Funding
TaxLevy
Notethatthechangepercentagesarenotadditive,duetocompounding.Forexample,expendituresgrew15%from2005to
2010,and10%from2010to2015,butthisrepresented27%(not25%)totalgrowthfrom2005to2015.
12
19%
10%
4%
8%
Enrollment
Expenditures
Chapter70
Funding
TaxLevy
Table5showsdataatthedistrictlevelforthesesamecategoriesenrollment,expenditures,Chapter70
funding,andtaxleviesforthe200510and201015timeperiods.Forregionaldistricts,thetaxlevy
columnreflectsthecombinedtaxleviesforeachtowninthedistrict.
Substantialvariationisevidentacrossdistrictswithinthecounty.Forexample,inAdamsCheshiretax
leviesgrewmuchfasterthantotalexpenditures,whereasinBerkshireHillsthegapbetweentaxlevies
andtotalexpenditureswasmuchsmaller.Providingthedataastwofiveyearperiodsratherthana
singletenyearperiodmakesitpossibletoseehowtrendschangedovertime.Forexample,taxleviesin
Lenoxgrewabouttwiceasfastfrom200510asfrom201015.Despitethevariationacrossdistricts,
thecountywidefiguresindicatetrendstowardsubstantiallydecliningenrollment,increasing
expendituresandtaxlevies,andstatefundingthatdoesnotkeepupwithincreaseddistrict
expenditures.
13
Table5:BerkshireCountyCostandRevenueTrendsbySchoolDistrict,200515
Change200510(%)
Change201015(%)
Student
Total
Chap.70
Tax
Student
Total
Chap.70
SchoolDistrict
Enrollment Expenditures Funding
Levy
Enrollment Expenditures Funding
TaxLevy
AdamsCheshire
13%
3%
8%
23%
13%
5%
4%
30%
BerkshireArtsTechCharter
238
ND
ND
NA
55
ND
ND
NA
BerkshireHills
2
15
7
27
3
15
2
15
CentralBerkshire
12
15
16
26
14
6
2
18
Clarksburg
12
25
15
27
4
5
5
38
FarmingtonRiver
25
15
13
34
14
24
0
25
Florida
4
22
22
36
20
16
6
17
Hancock
32
4
51
6
10
14
1
27
LanesboroughWilliamstown
14
14
18
24
8
7
4
14
Lee
4
22
37
23
19
7
2
15
Lenox
3
23
11
30
12
12
1
14
NorthAdams
21
3
3
31
10
3
4
29
NorthernBerkshireVocTech
7
35
50
NA
0
14
8
NA
Pittsfield
6
20
28
21
6
14
13
22
Richmond
12
23
13
30
10
7
1
14
Savoy
38
26
13
52
0
2
2
0
SouthernBerkshire
9
21
14
31
14
16
2
15
BerkshireCounty
9%
15%
19%
25%
8%
10%
4%
19%
ND=nodata.NA=notapplicable.ForChapter70funds,LeeincludesTyringham,SouthernBerkshireincludesMountWashington,and
LanesboroughWilliamstownincludesNewAshford.Taxleviesarecombinedforalltownsineachschooldistrict.
14
Taxlevylimitsandcapacity.8UnderstandingcostandrevenuetrendsfortheBerkshireCounty
publicschoolsalsorequiresconsideringtaxlevylimitsandcapacity.Table6showstaxrevenuestatistics
for2005,2010,2015,and2016.Includingdatafrom2016meansthatthetimeintervalsshowninthe
tablearenotallequal(i.e.,therearetwofiveyearspansandaoneyearspan),butthe2016datawere
availableandaddedimportantinformation.
Table6:TaxLevyLimitsandCapacity,AveragesforBerkshireCountySchoolDistricts,200516
Maximum TotalTax
Year
LevyLimit
Levy
2005 $5,562,966 $5,210,054
2010 6,966,674 6,518,710
2015 8,344,722 7,739,632
2016 8,593,004 8,025,466
Excess
Levy
Capacity
$352,912
447,964
605,090
567,538
ExcessLevy
Capacityas
a%of
Maximum
LevyLimit LevyCeiling
6.34% $9,946,864
6.43 13,682,139
7.25 13,154,003
6.60 13,223,172
Override
Capacity
$4,604,884
6,903,785
4,998,018
4,812,094
TaxLevy
Total
asa%of
Assessed
Assessed
Value
Value
$397,874,540
1.31%
547,285,555
1.19
526,160,116
1.47
528,926,883
1.52
Table7showschangesinthetaxrevenuevaluesduringeachofthethreetimeintervals.Theaverage
excesslevycapacityperschooldistrictfellbyabout6%from2015to2016,afterrising26.9%from2005
to2010and35.1%from2010to2015.Averageexcesslevycapacityasapercentageofthemaximum
levylimitalsofellin2016afterrisingovertheprevious10years;however,itremainedabove2005and
2010levels.Thesetrendreversalssuggestthatmanymunicipalitiesareutilizingaportionoftheir
remainingtaxingcapacityinordertosupporttheireducationalexpenditures.
Averagetotalassessedvalueincreased37.6%from2005to2010butthenfellby3.9%from2005to
2010andwasnearlyflat(anincreaseof0.5%)from2015to2016.Aswouldbeexpected,changesinthe
averagelevyceilingmirroredthesetrends.Averageoverridecapacityamplifiedthesetrends,growing
morethanassessedvaluefrom2005to2010,andfallingmorethanassessedvaluefrom2010to2015.
From2015to2016,however,thistrendwasinterrupted,withoverridecapacityfalling3.7%while
assessedvalueincreased0.5%,indicatingfurtherstrainonschooldistrictsabilitytoraisetaxesto
supporteducationalexpenditures.Thisisalsoreflectedintheaveragetaxlevyasapercentageof
assessedvalue,whichfellfrom1.31%in2005to1.19%in2010,buthassubsequentlyrisento1.52%in
2016(Table6andFigure6).
FinancetermsusedinthissectionareexplainedintheMADepartmentofRevenuespublication,Levylimits:Aprimeron
Proposition21/2,availableathttp://www.mass.gov/dor/docs/dls/publ/misc/levylimits.pdf.
15
Table7:ChangesinTaxLevyLimitsandCapacity,AveragesforBerkshireCountySchoolDistricts,200516
PercentChangesin:
Spanof
Years
200510
201015
201516
Maximum
LevyLimit
25.2%
19.8
3.0
TotalTax
Levy
25.1%
18.7
3.7
ExcessLevy
Capacityas
Excess
a%of
Levy
Maximum
Capacity LevyLimit LevyCeiling
26.9%
1.4%
37.6%
35.1
12.8
3.9
6.2
9.0
0.5
Override
Capacity
49.9%
27.6
3.7
TaxLevy
Total
asa%of
Assessed
Assessed
Value
Value
37.6%
9.2%
3.9
23.5
0.5
3.4
Figure6:AverageTaxLevyasaPercentageofAssessedValuefor
BerkshireCountyTowns,20052016
1.31%
1.47%
1.52%
2015
2016
1.19%
2005
2010
Theindividualmunicipalitiesinthecountyshowconsiderablevariationfromthecountywidetaxlevy
figures(Tables8,9,and10).Forexample,whiletheaveragechangeinassessedvaluefrom2005to2016
countywidewas33%,thisrangedfrom17%forLenoxto76%forHinsdale.Table8alsoshowsthat,on
average,taxlevyasapercentageofassessedvalueincreasedby0.21percentagepointsfrom2005to
2016.However,thisrangedfromadeclineof0.30percentagepointsforHancocktoanincreaseof0.62
percentagepointsforNorthAdams.
Excesslevycapacityfiguresarealsohighlyvariableatthetownlevel.Whiletheaverageexcesslevy
capacityincreasedbyabout$215,000from2005to2016,thisrangedfromadecreaseof$1.4millionfor
NorthAdamstoanincreaseof$4.3millionforPittsfield(Table9).Consideringexcesslevycapacityasa
percentageofthemaximumlevylimitsimplifiesmakingcomparisonsacrosstowns.Thisfiguregrewby
0.26percentagepointsfrom2005to2016forthecountyasawhole,butitrangedfromadecreaseof
almost17percentagepointsforClarksburgtoanincreaseof53percentagepointsforHancock(Table9).
16
SomeTaskForcemembersanddistrictadministratorsinterviewedforthisprojectnotedthathaving
substantialexcesslevycapacitydoesnotassurethatadistricthasastrongfiscalposition.Two
administratorsspecificallymentionedPittsfield,whichin2016hadan8%excesslevycapacityasa
percentageoftheirmaximumlevylimit;theyanticipatedthatthisexcesscapacitywoulddwindlerapidly
inthenexttwotothreeschoolyears.
Finally,overridecapacityishighlyvariableatthetownlevel.Whileoverridecapacityforthecounty
increasedby4%from2005to2016,itrangedfromadecreaseof100%forPittsfield(i.e.,theiroverride
capacitywenttozero)toanincreaseof99%forHinsdale(Table10).Consideringoverridecapacityasa
percentageofthetotaltaxlevysimplifiesmakingcomparisonsacrosstowns.Thisfiguredeclinedby28
percentagepointsfrom2005to2016forthecountyasawhole,anditdeclinedfor25outof32
municipalities(Table10).Therewasalsoawiderangeandnotableoutliers,suchasadeclineof106
percentagepointsforStockbridge(becausetheirtaxlevyincreasedsubstantiallywhiletheiroverride
capacitychangedminimally)andanincreaseof398percentagepointsforHancock(becausetheirtax
levydecreasedsubstantiallywhiletheiroverridecapacitychangedmoderately).
17
Table8:BerkshireCountyAssessedValueandTaxLevybyMunicipality,200516
Municipality
Adams
Alford
Becket
Cheshire
Clarksburg
Dalton
Egremont
Florida
GreatBarrington
Hancock
Hinsdale
Lanesborough
Lee
Lenox
Monterey
Mt.Washington
NewAshford
NewMarlborough
NorthAdams
Otis
Peru
Pittsfield
Richmond
Sandisfield
Savoy
Sheffield
Stockbridge
Tyringham
Washington
WestStockbridge
Williamstown
Windsor
BerkshireCounty
TotalAssessed TotalAssessed
Value2005
Value2016
$357,934,500 $482,882,333
180,734,950
273,428,704
328,300,700
502,028,856
211,016,989
302,765,482
84,069,064
112,169,420
447,111,318
595,474,465
312,527,938
384,010,808
98,948,175
125,126,992
871,438,862 1,386,204,580
224,006,718
298,369,678
167,496,825
295,023,940
330,640,729
397,346,099
649,856,713
912,378,464
970,735,660 1,138,874,950
310,972,829
504,273,397
60,325,454
83,231,659
29,242,700
40,934,800
360,013,000
485,264,620
553,363,255
709,233,263
385,669,663
608,324,038
58,777,129
86,345,909
2,767,583,665 3,343,164,997
311,045,724
409,000,588
171,010,190
216,332,965
51,748,481
67,162,428
456,468,827
608,085,291
714,159,424
849,885,678
136,623,160
192,834,550
50,249,783
79,790,690
234,270,827
371,379,468
772,762,800
956,447,233
72,879,240
107,883,908
$397,874,540 $528,926,883
%Change TaxLevyas TaxLevyas

Changein
inTotal
%of
%of
TaxLevyas%
Assessed
Assessed
Assessed
ofAssessed
Value
Value
Value
Value
200516
2005
2016
200516
35%
1.83%
2.22%
0.39
51
0.49
0.46
0.03
53
1.01
1.05
0.04
43
1.02
1.23
0.21
33
1.16
1.53
0.37
33
1.76
1.96
0.20
23
0.82
0.92
0.10
26
1.43
1.86
0.43
59
1.48
1.43
0.05
33
0.54
0.24
0.30
76
1.48
1.34
0.14
20
1.64
1.94
0.30
40
1.41
1.46
0.05
17
0.99
1.27
0.28
62
0.66
0.63
0.03
38
0.50
0.60
0.10
40
0.90
0.85
0.05
35
0.72
0.96
0.24
28
1.60
2.22
0.62
58
0.74
0.78
0.04
47
1.60
2.01
0.41
21
1.81
2.30
0.49
31
0.96
1.15
0.19
27
0.92
1.30
0.38
30
1.32
1.62
0.30
33
1.27
1.43
0.16
19
0.65
0.96
0.31
41
0.61
0.67
0.06
59
1.34
1.37
0.03
59
1.48
1.23
0.25
24
1.37
1.58
0.21
48
1.44
1.34
0.10
33%
1.31%
1.52%
0.21
18
Table9:BerkshireCountyExcessLevyCapacitybyMunicipality,200516
ExcessLevy ExcessLevy
Changein
Capacityas Capacityas ExcessLevy
Changein
%of
%of
Capacityas%
ExcessLevy Maximum Maximum ofMaximum
ExcessLevy
ExcessLevy
Capacity
LevyLimit LevyLimit
LevyLimit
Municipality
Capacity2005 Capacity2016
200516
2005
2016
200516
Adams
$450,533
$140,814
$309,719
6.44%
1.30%
5.14
Alford
157,616
235,950
78,334
14.98
15.80
0.82
Becket
3,236
328,974
325,738
0.10
5.90
5.80
Cheshire
17,576
33,201
15,625
0.81
0.89
0.08
Clarksburg
227,443
37,556
189,887
18.95
2.14
16.81
Dalton
101,454
128,834
27,380
1.27
1.09
0.18
Egremont
278,741
407,119
128,378
9.85
10.34
0.49
Florida
973
965
8
0.07
0.04
0.03
GreatBarrington
1,591,588
1,443,425
148,163
11.01
6.79
4.22
Hancock
177,493
1,401,712
1,224,219
12.80
66.19
53.39
Hinsdale
348,452
351,073
2,621
12.35
8.16
4.19
Lanesborough
83,627
205,796
122,169
1.52
2.61
1.09
Lee
300,562
1,677,712
1,377,150
3.17
11.21
8.04
Lenox
733,390
738,548
5,158
7.08
4.86
2.22
Monterey
82,147
90,033
7,886
3.86
2.78
1.08
Mt.Washington
80,101
43,935
36,166
21.05
8.04
13.01
NewAshford
925
102,606
101,681
0.35
22.87
22.52
NewMarlborough
93,058
13,653
79,405
3.46
0.29
3.17
NorthAdams
1,439,144
13,666 1,425,478
13.98
0.09
13.89
Otis
143,580
3,202
140,378
4.78
0.07
4.71
Peru
278,185
119,806
158,379
22.83
6.44
16.39
Pittsfield
2,462,698
6,793,669
4,330,971
4.69
8.13
3.44
Richmond
146,285
91,390
54,895
4.65
1.91
2.74
Sandisfield
223,184
81,478
141,706
12.47
2.82
9.65
Savoy
490
204,110
203,620
0.07
15.80
15.73
Sheffield
145,658
627,705
482,047
2.44
6.72
4.28
Stockbridge
993,237
678,594
314,643
17.58
7.69
9.89
Tyringham
97,881
59,701
38,180
10.51
4.39
6.12
Washington
27,212
42,797
15,585
3.89
3.76
0.13
WestStockbridge
363,211
886,455
523,244
9.46
16.22
6.76
Williamstown
229,274
1,032,865
803,591
2.12
6.40
4.28
Windsor
14,220
143,874
129,654
1.34
9.06
7.72
BerkshireCounty
$352,912
$567,538
$214,626
6.34%
6.60%
0.26
19
Table10:BerkshireCountyOverrideCapacitybyMunicipality,200516
Municipality
Adams
Alford
Becket
Cheshire
Clarksburg
Dalton
Egremont
Florida
GreatBarrington
Hancock
Hinsdale
Lanesborough
Lee
Lenox
Monterey
Mt.Washington
NewAshford
NewMarlborough
NorthAdams
Otis
Peru
Pittsfield
Richmond
Sandisfield
Savoy
Sheffield
Stockbridge
Tyringham
Washington
WestStockbridge
Williamstown
Windsor
BerkshireCounty
Override
Capacity2005
$2,047,642
3,561,445
5,093,813
3,166,086
921,375
3,529,241
5,212,508
1,058,207
9,185,957
4,213,039
1,554,142
3,089,665
7,483,570
14,502,005
5,878,211
1,127,614
467,146
6,539,083
3,538,517
6,780,541
341,141
16,704,529
4,628,267
2,552,657
616,609
5,739,810
12,681,145
2,484,298
608,000
2,375,029
8,862,983
812,024
$147,356,299
Override
Capacity2016
$1,845,331
5,341,996
7,138,181
4,195,311
1,067,887
3,557,304
5,664,091
838,109
14,807,485
5,341,442
3,098,329
2,110,123
8,537,616
12,938,971
9,456,371
1,534,136
574,777
7,635,276
1,985,109
10,509,630
311,788
0
5,591,314
2,555,564
386,919
5,854,484
13,538,634
3,461,458
920,365
3,927,185
8,148,839
1,112,986
$153,987,011
Override
Override
Changein
Changein Capacityas Capacityas
Override
Override
%ofTotal %ofTotal Capacityas%
Capacity
TaxLevy
TaxLevy
ofTotalTax
200516
2005
2016
Levy200516
10%
31%
17%
14%
50
398
425
27
40
153
136
17
33
147
113
34
16
95
62
33
1
45
30
14
9
204
160
44
21
75
36
39
61
71
75
3
27
348
746
398
99
63
78
16
32
57
27
30
14
82
64
17
11
151
89
61
61
287
300
13
36
375
305
70
23
178
166
11
17
252
164
88
44
40
13
27
55
237
220
17
9
36
18
18
100
33
0
33
21
154
119
35
0
163
91
72
37
90
36
55
2
99
67
32
7
272
166
106
39
298
266
32
51
90
84
6
65
68
86
17
8
84
54
30
37
77
77
0
4%
88%
60%
28%
Functionalexpendituresbycategory.Costtrendsarealsoevidentinschooldistrict
expendituresindifferentfunctionalareas.AnnualfinancialreportingtoESEfromschooldistrictsresults
in11functionalcategoriesthatarereportedatthecountyandstatelevelsinTable11andfurther
disaggregatedbydistrictinTables12Athrough12C.Countywidespendingcanbecomparedtostate
spendingineachcategory.Forexample,Table11showsthatthepercentageofbudgetsspenton
administrationwassimilaratthecountyandstatelevelsinboth2005and2015,differingbyjust3%.In
comparison,spendingonguidance,counseling,andtestingwasabout29%lowerinBerkshireCounty
20
thaninthestateinboth2005and2015.Therewerealsolargerelativechangesbetweenthecountyand
thestateinsomecategories.Forexample,countyexpendituresoninsurance,retirementprograms,and
otherwere2.7%lowerthanstateexpendituresin2005but18.8%higherin2015.
Table11:PercentageofFunctionalExpendituresbyCategory,Countyvs.StateComparison,200515
20051
Function
Berkshire
County2
State
2015
County
Relative
toState
Berkshire
County
State
County
Relative
toState
Administration
3.1%
3.2%
3.1%
3.2%
3.3%
3.0%
InstructionalLeadership
5.7
6.2
8.1
6.1
6.1
0.0
ClassroomandSpecialistTeachers
34.1
36.8
7.3
31.3
35.0
10.6
OtherTeachingServices
7.4
6.4
15.6
8.4
7.3
15.1
ProfessionalDevelopment
0.8
1.6
50.0
1.0
1.2
16.7
Instruct.Materials,Equipment,Tech
2.8
3.0
6.7
2.1
2.7
22.2
Guidance,Counseling,andTesting
1.9
2.7
29.6
2.0
2.8
28.6
PupilServices
8.1
8.7
6.9
8.3
8.9
6.7
OperationsandMaintenance
7.4
8.1
8.6
6.5
7.1
8.5
Insurance,RetirementPrograms,Other
14.4
14.8
2.7
18.3
15.4
18.8
PaymentstoOutofSchoolDistricts
14.2
8.4
69.0
12.8
10.2
25.5
1
Valuesinthestatecolumnarefrom2006;statewidepercentageswerenotavailablefor2005.
2
TheBerkshireArtsandTechnologyCharterPublicandNorthernBerkshireRegionalVocationalTechnicaldistricts
wereexcludedbecausetheirfinancialdatawerenotprovidedintheESEschooldistrictprofiles.
Tables12Athrough12Cshowthepercentageofdistrictspendingineachcategory,enabling
comparisonswithineachdistrictovertimeaswellasacrossdistrictsinthecountyandthestate.For
example,Table12AshowsthatNorthAdamsexpendituresonadministrationincreasedfrom1.7%to
3.2%oftheirtotalbudgetfrom2005to2015.Theirspendingonadministrationatthebeginningofthis
timeperiodwasfarbelowthecountyaverageof3.1%,butby2015theirspendingonadministration
equaledthecountyaverage.Thebottomrowsofeachtablepermitcomparisonsbetweenindividual
schooldistrictsandcountyandstateaverages.
Thetrendsforeachdistrictcouldserveasasourceofinformationforstrategicplanningregarding
financialsustainabilityandeducationalquality.Thiscouldincludeunderstandinghowthefiguresreflect
localcircumstances(e.g.,districtsize,averageageofpersonnel,geographicspread,infrastructure
needs),butalsowhethertheyadequatelyreflectlocalpriorities,needs,andgoals.
21
Table12A:PercentageofFunctionalExpendituresbySchoolDistrict andCategory,200515
(Categories14)
Instructional
Classroomand
OtherTeaching
Administration
Leadership
SpecialistTeachers
Services
1
2005
2015
2005
2015
2005
2015
2005
2015
District
AdamsCheshire
BerkshireHills
CentralBerkshire
Clarksburg
FarmingtonRiver
Florida
Hancock
Lanesborough
Lee
Lenox
MountGreylock
NorthAdams
Pittsfield
Richmond
Savoy
SouthernBerkshire
Williamstown
2.7%
4.4
3.1
3.1
3.7
4.4
1.5
2.3
2.6
3.8
3.7
1.7
2.2
2.1
3.6
2.9
4.5
3.2%
4.6
3.0
3.3
3.8
4.0
2.2
3.0
3.6
3.8
2.7
3.2
2.0
2.3
3.6
3.1
2.5
5.7%
6.0
5.3
8.9
5.6
6.8
1.8
4.8
7.3
5.1
4.5
4.9
8.2
4.3
6.6
6.0
4.8
5.3%
8.9
5.6
5.5
5.3
7.6
10.2
4.4
5.4
5.5
4.2
8.1
5.7
6.4
6.0
5.6
3.8
31.8%
37.1
39.7
32.7
22.3
33.2
21.8
40.0
39.1
41.7
32.2
42.0
35.9
36.0
20.6
36.7
36.7
33.7%
32.0
33.1
29.3
15.2
28.1
28.1
32.0
34.1
40.5
33.9
30.7
33.1
40.3
17.4
33.1
38.4
5.7%
6.5
7.3
7.8
9.0
4.2
3.0
12.6
8.3
7.7
6.7
6.3
7.0
6.8
4.5
8.0
13.9
7.9%
5.9
7.8
9.8
7.5
10.0
6.1
12.0
9.4
6.9
4.6
8.6
8.4
5.6
8.8
9.4
14.0
CountyAverage
3.1
3.2
5.7
6.1
34.1
31.3
7.4
8.4
StateAverage2
3.2
3.3
6.2
6.1
36.8
35.0
6.4
7.3
RatioCountytoState
3.1
3.0
8.1
0.0
7.3
10.6
15.6
15.1
1
TheBerkshireArtsandTechnologyCharterPublicandNorthernBerkshireRegionalVocationalTechnical
districtswereexcludedbecausetheirfinancialdatawerenotprovidedintheESEschooldistrictprofiles.
2
Valuesinthestaterowarefrom2006;statewidepercentageswerenotavailablefor2005.
22
Table12B:PercentageofFunctionalExpendituresbySchoolDistrictandCategory,200515
(Categories58)
Instructional
Materials,
Guidance,
Professional
Equipment,and
Counseling,and
Development
Technology
Testing
PupilServices
1
2005
2015
2005
2015
2005
2015
2005
2015
District
AdamsCheshire
BerkshireHills
CentralBerkshire
Clarksburg
FarmingtonRiver
Florida
Hancock
Lanesborough
Lee
Lenox
MountGreylock
NorthAdams
Pittsfield
Richmond
Savoy
SouthernBerkshire
Williamstown
0.7%
0.3
0.1
2.1
0.9
0.3
0.1
0.2
1.0
1.1
0.6
1.4
1.7
0.6
0.5
0.7
2.2
0.9%
0.6
1.7
0.7
0.8
0.5
1.7
0.4
1.3
1.1
1.1
0.6
1.3
0.8
0.1
1.0
2.2
1.9%
2.9
2.8
4.9
1.1
2.3
2.0
1.2
5.6
3.3
2.3
4.0
3.8
1.4
2.5
2.8
3.0
1.8%
1.1
2.2
1.4
2.6
1.3
1.4
4.4
1.5
4.0
2.0
1.2
3.3
1.7
1.3
1.4
4.2
3.1%
2.9
1.8
0.6
0.5
0.4
0.7
2.9
2.7
2.9
3.8
1.8
2.7
3.0
0.2
1.6
1.1
1.6%
2.9
3.2
1.4
1.4
0.7
1.4
1.3
2.9
2.5
3.0
2.1
2.7
2.6
0.8
2.3
1.3
10.2%
9.9
12.1
7.4
12.0
11.1
2.2
6.5
7.4
7.8
10.8
7.1
6.4
5.1
5.9
11.3
4.6
10.1%
9.8
10.9
8.3
10.6
10.0
5.5
7.2
8.3
6.9
9.1
9.0
7.2
6.8
5.1
11.2
5.3
CountyAverage
0.8
1.0
2.8
2.1
1.9
2.0
8.1
8.3
2
StateAverage
1.6
1.2
3.0
2.7
2.7
2.8
8.7
8.9
RatioCountytoState
50.0
16.7
6.7
22.2
29.6
28.6
6.9
6.7
1
TheBerkshireArtsandTechnologyCharterPublicandNorthernBerkshireRegionalVocationalTechnical
districtswereexcludedbecausetheirfinancialdatawerenotprovidedintheESEschooldistrictprofiles.
2
23
Table12C:PercentageofFunctionalExpendituresbySchoolDistrictandCategory,
200515(Categories911)
Operationsand
Insurance,Retirement PaymentstoOutof
Maintenance
Programs,andOther
SchoolDistricts
1
2005
2015
2005
2015
2005
2015
District
AdamsCheshire
BerkshireHills
CentralBerkshire
Clarksburg
FarmingtonRiver
Florida
Hancock
Lanesborough
Lee
Lenox
MountGreylock
NorthAdams
Pittsfield
Richmond
Savoy
SouthernBerkshire
Williamstown
11.2%
8.5
7.4
4.2
5.1
7.6
4.3
8.3
8.0
8.8
9.1
6.6
8.8
9.2
6.2
6.5
6.7
6.6%
7.5
8.4
4.9
5.8
6.4
3.2
8.1
7.6
8.1
8.5
6.3
7.2
6.3
3.4
7.2
4.8
19.8%
15.7
16.1
9.0
10.2
15.9
3.1
13.5
13.5
15.2
21.0
13.6
19.1
8.8
12.6
16.8
21.4
21.9%
19.6
20.0
16.3
17.8
19.4
1.9
24.0
19.7
17.4
18.8
18.4
20.4
12.4
23.0
20.5
19.9
7.1%
5.7
4.2
19.5
29.7
13.9
59.6
7.9
4.5
2.5
5.5
10.8
4.3
22.7
36.8
6.6
0.9
7.1%
7.0
4.1
19.1
29.2
12.2
38.4
3.3
6.3
3.3
12.0
11.9
8.6
15.0
30.6
5.3
3.6
CountyAverage
7.4
6.5
14.4
18.3
14.2
12.8
StateAverage2
8.1
7.1
14.8
15.4
8.4
10.2
RatioCountytoState
8.6
8.5
2.7
18.8
69.0
25.5
1
TheBerkshireArtsandTechnologyCharterPublicandNorthernBerkshireRegionalVocational
TechnicaldistrictswereexcludedbecausetheirfinancialdatawerenotprovidedintheESEschool
districtprofiles.
2
Selectedstudentpopulations.OnereasoncitedbyadministratorsforrisingcostsinBerkshire
Countydistrictswasanincreaseinthenumberofstudentsfromselectedpopulations,suchasstudents
fromlowincomefamilies,studentswithdisabilities,andEnglishlanguagelearners.Table13showsdata
atthedistrict,county,andstatelevelsforchangesinthepercentageofstudentsfromthesegroupsfrom
2005to2015.ThepercentageofstudentsfromlowincomefamiliesinBerkshireCountyincreased
substantially,from27.3%to34.0%.Moreover,thisincreaseof6.7percentagepointswasmuchhigher
thaninMassachusettsasawhole,whichdecreasedby1.4percentagepoints.Thepercentageof
studentswithdisabilitiesinBerkshireCountyincreasedfrom15.3%to17.7%.Thisincreaseof2.4
percentagepointswastwicethestatewideincreaseof1.2percentagepoints.ThepercentageofEnglish
languagelearnersinBerkshireCountydidnotincreasefrom2005to2015,whilethestatewiderate
increasedby3.4percentagepoints.
24
Changesintheselectedpopulationsvariedsubstantiallyacrossdistrictswithinthecounty.Forexample,
whilethepercentageofstudentsfromlowincomefamiliesincreasedinalmostalldistricts,some
districtsstartedbelowthecountysaveragerateandincreasedslowerthanthecountysaverage(e.g.,
Lee,MountGreylock),whileothersstartedabovethecountysaveragerateandincreasedfasterthan
thecountysaverage(e.g.,AdamsCheshire,NorthAdams,Pittsfield).Districtsizeisalsoanimportant
consideration.TheverylargeincreaseinstudentswithdisabilitiesinSavoy,from4%to22%,
correspondedtoanincreasefromabout2studentsin2005toabout8studentsin2015.Incontrast,the
muchsmallerincreaseinPittsfield,from15%to19%,correspondedtoanincreaseofabout220
studentswithdisabilitiesduringthat10yearperiod.WhileBerkshireCountyhadamuchlower
percentageofEnglishlanguagelearnersthanthestateasawhole,somedistrictsexperienced
substantialchanges,suchasLenox,whoseELLpopulationgrewfromabout2studentsto17students.
District
Table13:PercentageofStudentsinSelectedPopulationsbySchoolDistrict,200515
Studentswith
EnglishLanguage
LowIncome(%)
Disabilities(%)
Learners(%)
Change
Change
Change
2005 2015 200515 2005 2015 200515 2005 2015 200515
AdamsCheshire
BARTCharter
BerkshireHills
CentralBerkshire
Clarksburg
FarmingtonRiver
Florida
Hancock
Lanesborough
Lee
Lenox
MountGreylock
NorthAdams
N.BerkshireVocTech
Pittsfield
Richmond
Savoy
SouthernBerkshire
Williamstown
29.7
54.7
20.8
18.5
20.6
26.3
13.5
18.9
9.8
23.0
4.9
12.9
41.1
30.3
35.9
1.5
0.0
20.4
13.0
36.4
39.8
22.3
24.7
29.8
34.9
31.5
20.9
27.8
24.0
17.6
14.4
52.7
26.6
43.4
15.2
22.0
25.3
15.5
6.7
14.9
1.5
6.2
9.2
8.6
18.0
2.0
18.0
1.0
12.7
1.5
11.6
3.7
7.5
13.7
22.0
4.9
2.5
16.5
35.9
14.7
16.2
9.0
19.4
15.3
9.8
13.8
14.2
13.5
13.3
16.6
22.8
15.2
5.6
4.2
14.8
12.4
22.0
21.3
15.3
13.8
22.5
18.2
30.3
14.0
20.8
13.2
7.7
12.8
26.0
15.0
19.4
2.5
22.0
14.9
12.2
5.5
14.6
0.6
2.4
13.5
1.2
15.0
4.2
7.0
1.0
5.8
0.5
9.4
7.8
4.2
3.1
17.8
0.1
0.2
0.1
0.0
1.6
0.1
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
3.8
0.2
0.0
2.1
0.0
3.7
0.0
0.0
0.6
0.6
0.4
0.9
2.2
0.3
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
3.4
2.5
0.2
0.9
0.0
4.4
0.0
0.0
1.6
0.9
0.3
0.9
0.6
0.2
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.4
2.3
0.2
1.2
0.0
0.7
0.0
0.0
1.0
0.3
BerkshireCounty
State
27.3
27.7
34.0
26.3
6.7
1.4
15.3
15.9
17.7
17.1
2.4
1.2
1.8
5.1
1.8
8.5
0.0
3.4
Schoolchoice.Manyadministratorsmentionedschoolchoicecostsorrevenuesasasignificant
influenceontheirfinancialstanding.Thenetfinancialimpactofschoolchoiceisminimalforsome
districts,suchasLanesborough,whichinthe201415schoolyearhadanetlossof1.3FTEstudentsand
25
anetrevenuegainof0.3%oftheirtotalexpenditures(Table14).Fromthe200405schoolyeartothe
201415schoolyear,somedistrictshaveexperiencedsubstantialchangesinschoolchoiceenrollment.
Lenoxhadanetgainof79studentsin2005andanetgainof195studentsin2015,anincreaseof116
students.Pittsfieldhadanetlossof166studentsin2005andanetlossof344studentsin2015,a
decreaseof178students.
Adistrictstotalenrollmentisalsorelevanttotheimpactofschoolchoice.Thegainsjustdescribedfor
Lenoxcorrespondedtoanincreasefrom9.5%oftheirtotalenrollmentin2005to27.6%oftheirtotal
enrollmentin2015.Pittsfieldslosseswerelargerinabsolutetermsbutsmallerinrelativeterms,
correspondingtolossesoffrom2.6%to6.2%oftheirtotalenrollment.Forsomedistricts,thenetgain
orlossofstudentscomprisesasubstantialpercentageoftheirenrollment,suchasRichmondsnetgain
of41.3%orFarmingtonRiversnetlossof35.6%inthe201415schoolyear.Bothofthesedistrictsalso
experiencedlargeshiftsfrom2005to2015intheirnetgainorlossofschoolchoicestudentsasa
percentageoftotalenrollment;Richmondshiftedfroma3.2%losstoa41.3%gain,andFarmington
Rivershiftedfroma2.2%gaintoa35.6%loss.
Table14:SchoolChoiceEnrollmentTrendsbySchoolDistrict,200515
NetGainofFTEStudents
NetGainofFTEStudents
as%ofTotalEnrollment
Change
Change
District
2005
2015
200515
2005
2015
200515
AdamsCheshire
16.5
21.2
37.6
0.9%
1.6%
2.6%
BerkshireHills
75.2
139.3
64.1
5.4
10.6
5.2%
CentralBerkshire
8.5
5.0
13.5
0.4
0.3
0.7%
Clarksburg
8.6
13.9
22.5
4.3
8.3
12.6%
FarmingtonRiver
3.6
37.0
40.6
2.2
35.6
37.8%
Florida
3.7
2.0
1.7
3.7
2.4
1.3%
Hancock
14.6
8.0
6.6
33.1
24.2
8.9%
Lanesborough
17.0
1.3
18.3
6.3
0.7
6.9%
Lee
45.1
38.3
6.8
5.3
5.8
0.5%
Lenox
78.8
195.1
116.3
9.5
27.6
18.1%
MountGreylock
40.2
42.6
2.4
5.5
7.8
2.3%
NorthAdams
85.5
73.7
11.9
4.4
5.4
1.0%
N.BerkshireVocTech
0.0
4.0
4.0
0.0
0.8
0.8%
Pittsfield
166.4
344.3
177.9
2.6
6.2
3.5%
Richmond
5.9
59.8
65.8
3.2
41.3
44.5%
Savoy
5.5
11.5
6.0
9.8
32.8
23.0%
SouthernBerkshire
13.7
9.6
23.3
1.4
1.3
2.7%
Williamstown
70.0
37.6
32.4
14.9
8.8
6.1%
Thefinancialimpactsoftheseschoolchoiceenrollmenttrendscanbesubstantial(Table15).For
example,thetrendsjustdescribedforRichmondrepresentedan8.6%increaseintheportionoftheir
26
totalexpendituresaccountedforbyschoolchoicerevenue.Theimpactscanalsobelargeinabsolute
terms,suchasPittsfieldsnetoutflowof$0.9millionin2005and$1.9millionin2015.
ComparingTables14and15,itisapparentthatthenetgainofstudentsasapercentageoftotal
enrollmentisgreaterthanthenetschoolchoicerevenueasapercentageoftotalexpenditures.For
example,Clarksburgsnetenrollmentgainof8.3%in2015correspondedtoanetrevenuegainofjust
2.2%.Thisisprimarilybecauseschoolchoicetuitioniscappedat$5,000perpupil,9whichismuchless
thanthedistrictsactualexpendituresperpupil.
Table15:SchoolChoiceRevenueTrendsbySchoolDistrict,200515
NetSchoolChoiceRevenue
NetSchoolChoiceRevenue
as%ofTotalExpenditures
Change
Change
District
2005
2015
200515
2005
2015
200515
AdamsCheshire
$53,448
$122,304
$175,752
0.3%
0.6%
0.9%
BerkshireHills
358,601
708,582
349,981
1.9
2.8
0.9
CentralBerkshire
129,355
169,464
298,819
0.6
0.6
1.2
Clarksburg
49,324
68,976
118,300
1.8
2.2
4.0
FarmingtonRiver
68,172
196,867
265,039
2.0
4.0
6.0
Florida
18,281
8,292
9,989
1.4
0.5
1.0
Hancock
125,682
40,000
85,682
9.9
3.5
6.3
Lanesborough
82,194
12,064
70,130
2.4
0.3
2.1
Lee
276,869
244,074
32,795
2.8
1.9
0.9
Lenox
412,571
960,789
548,218
4.1
7.0
2.8
MountGreylock
218,719
247,926
29,207
2.4
2.2
0.2
NorthAdams
459,742
417,366
42,376
1.8
1.6
0.2
N.BerkshireVocTech
0
20,000
20,000
0.0
0.2
0.2
Pittsfield
876,786 1,932,300
1,055,514
1.3
2.1
0.8
Richmond
29,500
293,148
322,648
1.0
7.6
8.6
Savoy
25,673
91,744
66,071
2.7
7.5
4.8
SouthernBerkshire
143,200
257
142,943
1.2
0.0
1.2
Williamstown
474,642
214,544
260,098
8.9
3.2
5.7
Thenetgainorlossofrevenueasapercentageoftotalexpenditurescanalsobelargeformanydistricts,
suchasanetgainof7.0%forLenoxandanetlossof7.5%forSavoy.Theabsolutegainsorlossescan
alsobelarge,suchasanetgainof195studentsandalmost$1millionforLenox,andanetlossof344
studentsandalmost$2millionforPittsfield.
Buildingcapacity.ManyschoolbuildingsinBerkshireCountyarefilledbelowcapacity.This
increasesthelevelofbuildingcostsperstudent,becausesomecostsareincurredregardlessofthe
9
Anexceptiontothe$5,000capisthatthesendingdistrictpaysthefullspecialeducationcostforeachpupilwithan
individualizededucationplan.ThespecialeducationexceptionmayaccountfortheanomalousfiguresforSouthernBerkshire,
whichhadanetlossof9.6studentsinschoolyear201415butasmallnetgaininschoolchoicerevenue.
27
numberofstudentsutilizingthebuilding.Thecapacityproblemhasworsenedduetodeclining
enrollment,andasenrollmentcontinuestodeclineinthenextdecade,theproblemwillbefurther
exacerbated.
In2015,thepercentageofbuildingcapacitythatwasbeingutilizedrangedfrom46%to91%forhigh
schools,64%to92%formiddleschools,and31%to103%forelementaryschools(Table16).For2025,
theprojectedpercentageofbuildingcapacitythatwillbeutilizedrangesfrom43%to91%forhigh
schools,51%to86%formiddleschools,and16%to95%forelementaryschools.Schooldistrict
administratorsandTaskForcememberssaidthatsomeschooldistrictswillneedtoaddresstheissueof
unusedbuildingcapacityaspartoftheirlongtermstrategyforfinancialsustainability.Thismight
includeclosingbuildings,findingadditionalusesforunusedbuildingspace,orcombiningbuilding
capacitywithotherdistrictsaspartofregionalization.
Table16:PercentageofBuildingCapacityUtilized,2015Actualand2025Projected
Grade
Building Students Students 2015%of
School
District
Levels
Capacity
2015
2025
Capacity
2025%of
Capacity
HighSchools
HoosacValley
BART
MonumentMountain
Wahconah
Lee
Lenox
Mt.Greylock
Drury
McCann
Pittsfield
Taconic
MountEverett
MiddleSchools
AdamsCheshire
BART
BerkshireHills
CentralBerkshire
Lee
Lenox
Mt.Greylock
NorthAdams
N.BerkshireTech
Pittsfield
Pittsfield
S.Berkshire
612
612
912
912
712
612
712
812
912
912
912
712
805
ND
700
800
704
540
1200
525
550
1650
920
ND
662
334
542
540
335
405
548
459
500
916
774
223
505
464
524
366
318
317
520
428
500
865
733
127
82%
ND
77
68
48
75
46
87
91
56
84
ND
63%
ND
75
46
45
59
43
82
91
52
80
ND
MonumentValley
Nessacus
HerbergSchool
Reid
ElementarySchools
BerkshireHills
CentralBerkshire
Pittsfield
Pittsfield
58
68
440
700
765
726
403
445
633
517
378
360
611
499
92
64
83
71
86
51
80
69
Cheshire
CTPlunkett
Craneville
Kittredge
BecketWashington
AdamsCheshire
AdamsCheshire
CentralBerkshire
CentralBerkshire
CentralBerkshire
K5
K5
K5
K5
K5
300
610
510
400
250
223
467
428
124
115
174
366
417
122
111
74
77
84
31
46
58
60
82
31
44
28
Table16:PercentageofBuildingCapacityUtilized,2015Actualand2025Projected(continued)
Grade
Building Students Students 2015%of 2025%of
School
District
Levels
Capacity
2015
2025
Capacity
Capacity
ElementarySchools
Clarksburg
Clarksburg
K8
210
168
113
80
54
FarmingtonRiver
FarmingtonRiver
K6
ND
129
100
ND
ND
Florida
Florida
K8
ND
89
52
ND
ND
MuddyBrook
GreatBarrington
K4
560
385
331
69
59
Hancock
Hancock
K6
90
43
14
48
16
Lanesborough
Lanesborough
K6
300
216
219
72
73
Lee
Lee
K6
550
348
366
63
67
Morris
Lenox
K5
550
322
233
59
42
Brayton
NorthAdams
K7
500
393
355
79
71
ColegrovePark
NorthAdams
K7
310
284
220
92
71
Greylock
NorthAdams
K7
310
233
199
75
64
Allendale
Pittsfield
K5
336
316
294
94
88
Capeless
Pittsfield
K5
268
235
219
88
82
Crosby
Pittsfield
K5
500
410
381
82
76
Egremont
Pittsfield
K5
500
514
477
103
95
Morningside
Pittsfield
K5
520
473
440
91
85
Stearns
Pittsfield
K5
240
234
217
98
90
SilvioConte
Pittsfield
K5
520
386
359
74
69
Williams
Pittsfield
K5
434
336
312
77
72
Richmond
Richmond
K8
ND
158
184
ND
ND
Savoy
Savoy
K5
ND
35
26
ND
ND
Monterey
S.Berkshire
K
ND
6
3
ND
ND
NewMarlborough
S.Berkshire
K4
ND
84
62
ND
ND
SouthEgremont
S.Berkshire
K1
ND
13
9
ND
ND
Undermountain
S.Berkshire
K6
ND
329
214
ND
ND
Williamstown
Williamstown
K6
ND
459
429
ND
ND
Notes:EnrollmentfiguresincludePreKstudentswhenthePreKprogramislocatedinthesamebuilding.Post12th
gradeenrollmentisnotincluded.CapacityforTaconicHighSchoolislistedforthebuildingthatisunderconstruction
in2016.ND=datanotavailable.
Studentsperteacher.Asstudentenrollmenthasdeclined,thenumberofteachershasalso
declined.Animportantaspectofeducationalqualitynotedbyadministratorsinterviewedforthestudy
isclasssize.Whileclasssizefiguresarenotavailable,thenumberoffulltimeequivalent(FTE)teachers
perdistrictcanbeusedtocalculatearelatedmeasure,thenumberofstudentsperteacher.Thisstatistic
isdifferentfromaverageclasssize,becauseitincludesbothclassroomandspecialistteachers.However,
itcanserveasanindicatorofthelevelofinstructionalpersonnel.Thenumberofstudentsperteacher
graduallydeclinedfrom12.8inthe19992000schoolyearto10.9inthe201415schoolyear(Figure7).
29
Atemporaryreversalofthistrendcanbeseeninthe200910schoolyear,whenthenumberof
studentsperteacherincreasedto11.6.
Thetrendisinthedirectionofahigherlevelofstaffingperstudent.Thedatadonotindicatehowmuch
ofthestaffingcomprisesclassroomteachersversusspecialistteachers.Therefore,itispossiblethat
classsizeshavedecreased,oralternativelythatthenumberofspecialistteachershasincreased(to
supportthegrowingpercentageofhighneedsstudents)whileclassroomsizeshaveremainedthesame
orincreased.
Figure7:StudentsperTeacher,
BerkshireCountyPublicSchools,20002015
12.8
SY2000
11.2
11.6
SY2005
SY2010
10.9
SY2015
ThenumberofstudentsperteachervariedsubstantiallyacrossdistrictsinBerkshireCounty(Table17).
Forexample,althoughthecountyaveragein2015was10.9studentsperteacher,thisrangedfrom4.7
inHancockto13.0inAdamsCheshire.Moreover,inmostdistricts,thenumberofFTEteachersdeclined
from2005to2015,but,perhapscontrarytoexpectations,thenumberofstudentsperteacheralso
declined.InthreedistrictsBerkshireHills,NorthAdams,andSouthernBerkshirethenumberof
studentsperteacherincreased.NorthAdamswasthemostnotableexample,witha46%declinein
teacherFTEsfrom2005to2015andanincreasefrom8.2to10.7inthenumberofstudentsperteacher.
Despitethisincrease,NorthAdamsremainedbelowthecountyaverageof10.9studentsperteacher.
Thecountyaveragewasalsosubstantiallylowerthanthestateaverageatallthreetimeperiodsshown
inTable17.AcomparisonofcountyandstateaveragesindicatesthatBerkshireCountyhassubstantially
fewerstudentsperteacherthanMassachusettsasawhole.Moreover,thisgaphaswidened,with
BerkshireCountyhaving15%fewerstudentsperteacherthanthestatein2005,18%fewerin2010,and
21%fewerin2015.
Thenarrativehasusedthetermslowerandhighertodescribetheseaverages,ratherthanbetter
andworse.Thisisbecausethevalueladenlattertermsdependononesperspective.Mostpeople
30
wouldarguethat,toapoint,havingfewerstudentsperteacherisbetterfromtheperspectiveof
educationalquality.However,havingmorestudentsperteacherispresumablybetterfromthe
perspectiveoffinancialsustainability.Theappropriatenessofagivennumberofstudentsperteacher
alsodependsonfactorssuchasthelevelofneedofthestudentsinagivenschoolordistrict,as
discussedintheselectedpopulationssectionearlier.Withhigherneedstudents,fewerstudentsper
teachermayberequiredtoachieveagivenlevelofeducationalquality.
Table17:FullTimeEquivalentTeachersandStudentsperTeacherbySchoolDistrict,200515
SY05
SY10
SY15
FTE
Students
FTE
Students
FTE
Students
District
Teachers perTeacher Teachers perTeacher Teachers perTeacher
AdamsCheshire
BerkshireHills
CentralBerkshire
Clarksburg
FarmingtonRiver
Florida
Hancock
Lanesborough
Lee
Lenox
MountGreylock
NorthAdams
N.BerkshireVocTech
Pittsfield
Richmond
Savoy
SouthernBerkshire
Williamstown
BerkshireCounty
Massachusetts
129
125
157
17
15
12
5
24
76
77
54
237
48
539
20
5
108
36
13.5
11.0
14.0
11.7
10.8
8.3
8.8
11.3
11.2
10.8
13.5
8.2
9.8
11.7
9.2
11.2
8.8
13.1
104
125
145
15
17
12
6
20
75
69
50
148
46
509
19
5
83
33
14.5
10.8
13.3
11.7
7.1
8.6
5.0
12.2
10.9
11.7
12.7
10.3
10.9
11.7
8.5
7.0
10.4
11.9
101
113
141
15
15
13
7
22
71
78
49
128
51
487
17
4
80
37
13.0
11.6
11.8
11.2
6.9
6.3
4.7
8.8
9.4
9.1
11.2
10.7
9.8
11.5
8.5
8.8
9.3
11.6
1,684
73,757
11.2
13.2
1,481
67,747
11.6
14.1
1,429
69,344
10.9
13.8
Teachersalaries.Teachersalarytrendsarealsorelevanttodiscussionsoffinancialsustainability
andpossiblefutureregionalizationandsharedservicesinBerkshireCounty.Knowingaschooldistricts
averagesalaryandchangeovertimeisinformative,butadeeperunderstandingoftheirmeaning
requiresadditionalinformationaboutfactorssuchasteacherseducationlevelandyearsofexperience,
thedistrictspopulationdensity(e.g.,ruralversussuburban),andthelevelofeducationandincomeof
communitymembers,allofwhichmayinfluenceteacherssalaries(CallasandMcCormick,1993).
AverageteachersalarieshaveriseninBerkshireCountyfrom2005to2015ataslightlyslowerratethan
inthestateoverall(Table18).TheaverageteachersalaryinMassachusettswashigherthaninBerkshire
31
Countyby10%in2005andby12%in2015.Averageteachersalariesvariedsubstantiallyacrossdistricts.
Forexample,theaveragesalaryinBerkshireCountyinthe20145schoolyearwas$67,041,butthis
rangedfrom$40,903inFlorida(39%belowthecountyaverage)to$93,754inRichmond(40%abovethe
countyaverage).Salarytrendswithindistrictsalsovariedsubstantially,suchasSouthernBerkshire
steadilyincreasingcomparedtothecountyaverageandFarmingtonRiversteadilydecreasingcompared
tothecountyaverage.
Table18:AverageTeacherSalaryandComparisontoCountyAverage,bySchoolDistrict,200515
SY05
SchoolDistrict
AdamsCheshire
BerkshireHills
CentralBerkshire
Clarksburg
FarmingtonRiver
Florida
Hancock
Lanesborough
Lee
Lenox
MountGreylock
NorthAdams
N.BerkshireVocTech
Pittsfield
Richmond
Savoy
SouthernBerkshire
Williamstown
BerkshireCounty1
Massachusetts1
1
Average
Salary
SY10
Comparison
toCounty
Average
Salary
SY15
Comparison
toCounty
Average
Salary
Comparison
toCounty
$46,631
56,509
59,054
53,566
50,829
36,194
52,397
57,615
52,525
55,146
55,630
46,753
51,603
46,113
52,147
38,563
41,126
55,441
6%
14
19
8
3
27
6
16
6
11
12
6
4
7
5
22
17
12
$64,342
63,269
58,520
60,581
57,465
36,153
66,228
78,725
57,772
71,334
68,197
61,099
75,630
53,707
78,691
45,541
57,557
72,807
8%
6
2
1
4
40
11
32
3
19
14
2
26
10
31
24
4
22
$67,378
71,618
69,081
61,635
51,018
40,903
48,959
58,259
64,212
72,217
79,391
62,613
78,016
64,515
93,754
52,156
70,660
70,952
1%
7
3
8
24
39
27
13
4
8
18
7
16
4
40
22
5
6
49,524
54,701
NA
10
59,844
68,781
NA
15
67,041
74,782
NA
12
Averagecountyandstatesalariesareweightedbythenumberofteachersineachschooldistrict.
4.EducationalProgramTrends
Bothsetsofadministratorinterviewsinvestigatedpossiblechangesinthediversityorrangeof
educationalprogramsavailabletoBerkshireCountystudents.Thefirstsetofinterviews,whichasked
administratorstocommentonchangesinthepastfiveyears,yieldedafairlyhighsenseofurgencyfrom
abouthalfofthedistrictsregardingprogramimpactsduetodecliningenrollmentand/orrevenue
shortfalls.Afterreviewingthesefindings,theTaskForcewasconcernedthatafiveyeartimeframewas
32
insufficienttocapturethechangestheywereseekingtodocument.Thesecondsetofinterviewswas
withindividualswhohadbeenBerkshireCountyadministratorsforatleast15years,andthese
interviewsyieldedamoreconsistentlevelofconcernaboutreducedprogramofferings.Findingsfrom
bothsetsofinterviewsarepresentednext.
Fiveyeartimeframe.Whencommentingonthepastfiveyears,abouthalfofthedistricts
expressedfairlylowurgencyaboutprogramimpactsduetodecliningenrollmentand/orrevenue
shortfalls.Avarietyofreasonsforthisoutlookwereapparent.Afewdistrictsareprojectedtohaveonly
smallenrollmentdeclinesorevensmallincreasesfrom2015to2025.Multipleadministratorsbelieved
thatanincreaseintheirschoolchoiceenrollmentwouldoffsetdeclinesintheirfoundationenrollment.
Othersbelievedthataplannedorrecentlycompletedfacilitiesupgradewouldattractnewstudentsor
stemoutflowsfromthedistrict.Stillotherspointedoutthattheyhadalargeclassofstudentscoming
intotheirprekindergarteninthecurrentorfutureyears.Asmallnumberofdistrictsdescribed
anticipatedenrollmenttrendsthatwereinconsistentwiththeprojectionsdescribedearlierorcited
enrollmentnumbersthatwereinconsistentwithESEsonlinedata.Thescopeoftheinterviewsdidnot
permitprobingthesourceofthesebeliefs.
Similarly,manydistrictsreportedthatnegativeprogramimpactsinthepastfiveyearsduetodeclining
enrollmentand/orrevenueshortfallshadbeenminimal.Manyofthesedistrictsdescribedreductionsto
administrative,instructional,andsupportservicespersonnelthatwerenecessaryduetodecreased
enrollmentduringthepastfiveyears,andinsomecasesthesecutswereemotionallywrenchingforthe
district.Inothercases,reductionswereaccomplishedbynotreplacingretiringemployees.However,
mostdistrictsreportedthatthesepersonnelreductionsdidnotleadtoreductionsinacademic,student
support,orextracurricularprogramofferingstostudents,orthattheprogramreductionswereminimal.
Foracademicprograms,thiswasaccomplishedbyreducingthenumberofsectionsoffered,orinsome
casesincreasingclasssizeswhilestayingwithinreasonablelimits.Inthecaseofathleticsandsomeother
extracurricularactivities,severaldistrictshadinstitutedparticipationfeesthatarewaivedforstudents
whoareeligibleforfreeorreducedpricelunch.
Incontrast,abouthalfofthedistrictsexpressedmoderatetoseriousconcerns,althoughtheconcerns
weretypicallymoreseriouswithregardtothenextfiveyearsthanthepastfiveyears.Onedistrictin
particularreportedurgentcircumstances,sayingAdamsCheshirewontbeabletosurviveonitsown.
Theysaidthatthedistrictislikelytocloseaschool,andthatevendoingsomightonlyforestallan
unacceptablefiscalandprogramsituationforafewyears.Theyemphasizedthattheircurrentsituation
isduetorevenueshortfallsratherthandecliningenrollment.Theirbudgetforthe201617schoolyear
cut$1millionand12positions,includingtechnologydirector,curriculumdirector,elementary
coordinator,assistantbusinessadministrator,buildingsecretary,sixteachers,and1.5paraprofessionals,
aswellasfourathleticcoaches(Guerino,2016).Themiddleandhighschoolprincipalsaid,
33
Wevestrippedawayeverythingwecanwithoutaffectingtheclassroomexperience.
Werereallygettingtothepointwheretheresnotmuchhappeningintheschoolother
thanateacherinaclassroomwithstudents.
Multipledistrictscharacterizedthemselvesasnearingatippingpoint,wherepastcutshadminimal
programimpactsbutfuturecutswouldaffectstudentsexperiencesmoredirectly.BerkshireHillssaid,
Wererightontheedgewherewerenotgoingtobeableto[avoidprogramcuts]
anymore.Overtimewehavereducedpositionsandaskedpeopletodomorewith
less.Itsmakingthejob,particularlyofateacher,harderthanitseverbeen.I
wouldliketofreeupsometimeandresourcesforpeopletoimplementandrefinenew
programs,andweresortofdoingtheoppositeofthat.
NorthAdamsdescribedhavingverylargeclasssizesinsomesubjectsduetostaffcuts.Multipledistricts
reportedreducingforeignlanguageofferings,particularlyFrench,aswellascuttinginstructional
technology,curriculumdevelopment,andlibrarianpositions.Pittsfieldanticipatedthatanincreasing
proportionoftheirbudgetwillbespentonspecialeducation,mentalhealth,andELLprogrammingand
said,Ithinkwewillseeadeclineinnotonlythecorecoursesthatwevalue,butwearealsostruggling
toholdontofineartscoursesandAPcourses,whicharetwoofthethingsthatdefineushereinthe
Berkshires.Overall,abouthalfofthedistrictsanticipatedhavingtocutprogramsinthenextfiveyears.
Decliningstateandtaxrevenuesandincreasedpersonnelandbenefitscostswereprominentissuesfor
manyadministrators,eventhoseindistrictsthatdidnotanticipateprogramorstaffingcutsandwhose
townsconsistentlypassedtheproposedannualbudgets.PittsfieldexplainedthatChapter70increases
fiveyearsagowere$11.8millionperyear,butinthepastfiveyearstheyhavebeenintherangeof
$55100thousandperyear.Multipledistrictsreportedthattheyhadreachedorwerenearingtheirtax
levyceiling,meaningthattheyhaveorwillsoonhaveminimalabilitytoincreaselocaltaxesevenas
costsincrease.Additionalbudgetchallengesreportedbysomedistrictsincludedanetoutflowofschool
choicestudentsandhighorunanticipatedcostsforspecialeducationservices.
Fifteenyeartimeframe.
Educationalprogramofferings.Whenaskedifeducationalofferingshadbeenreducedinthe
past15years,fouroutoffiveadministratorssaidyesandratedthedeclinesfrommoderateto
extensive(Table19).10Awiderangeofreductionsweredescribedthatvariedfromdistricttodistrict.
Manypositionshadbeencut,reduced,orsharedacrossschools;theseincludedlibrarians,
paraprofessionals,andteachersinthearts,performingarts,music,physicaleducation,andforeign
languages.Duetoeducationreformrequirementsattheelementarylevel,moretimehasbeenspentin
10
ResponseoptionsprovidedforitemsshowninTables19to23wereminimal,moderate,andextensive.However,
responsessuchasbetweenmoderateandextensivewerecommon,whichwerecodedasmin/modormod/ext.
34
languageartsandmathematics,withcorrespondingreductionsinscienceandsocialstudies.Several
foreignlanguageswereeliminated,fewersectionsofAdvancedPlacementandintensivecourseswere
offered,andstudentswerereducedfromfivedaystothreedaysofphysicaleducationclassesperweek.
Somevocationalofferingswithintraditionalhighschoolswerealsoreducedoreliminated,suchashouse
building,culinary,automotive,anddraftingprograms.Classsizeswerealsoincreasedformanystudents.
Onerespondentsaidthatinthedistrictswithgreaterfinancialchallenges,notmuchisofferedbeyond
coreacademiccourses,andthatthisproblemhasgottenworseinthepast15years.
Inonedistrict,theintervieweesaidthateducationalofferingshadnotbeencut,andsomenew
programshadbeenadded,suchasworkbasedlearningprograms.Asecondintervieweesaidthatthere
hadbeenanetreductioninprograms,butsomenewprogramshadbeenintroduced,suchas
engineeringandrobotics.
Table19:HaveEducationalOfferingsBeenReducedinthePast15Years?
Yes
No
4
1
Minimal
Min/Mod
Moderate
Mod/Ext
Extensive
0
0
1
2
1
Theadministratorswereaskedwhetherdecreasesinthenumbersofclasssectionsofferedoverthepast
15yearshaveresultedinstudentsbeinglessabletotaketheclassestheywanted.Fouroutoffive
administratorssaidyes,andtheyratedthedeclinesfrommoderatetomoderate/extensive(Table20).
Oneadministratorexplainedthatdecliningenrollmenthasledtofewersectionsbeingoffered,which
causesschedulingconflictssuchasAPbiologyandFrenchbeingofferedatthesametime.Studentsmay
wanttotakebothcourses,buttheycanonlytakeone.Anotheradministratornotedthatthese
schedulingconflictsresultinstudentsbeingassignedtomorestudyhalls,whichareoftenunproductive
academically.Schedulingconflictsduetoareducednumberofsectionscanbeparticularlyproblematic
forvocationalstudents,becausetheirrequiredshophoursleavefeweropeningsintheirschedulefor
takingacademiccourses.
Table20:HaveFewerSectionOfferingsReducedStudentsAbility
toTaketheClassestheyWantOverthePast15Years?
Yes
No
4
1
Minimal
Min/Mod
Moderate
Mod/Ext
Extensive
0
0
2
2
0
TheTaskForcewantedtoknowifsomeschoolswithlimitedstaffingand/orlimitedstudentenrollment
diversifytheircourseofferingsbyteachingmultiplecoursesinthesameroomatthesametimewitha
singleteacher.ExampleswouldbeacoursewiththreedifferentlevelsofFrenchinthesameroom,ora
standardlevelgeometrycoursewherestudentscouldreceivehonorsbycompletingadditional
35
assignments.Allfiveadministratorswereawareofthispracticebeingusedintheirowndistrictsand
elsewhereinBerkshireCounty,andtheybelievedthatithasincreasedinthepast15years.
Theynotedfarmorelimitationsthanstrengthsofthisapproachtoteaching.Thestrengthsincluded
beingabletomaintainmorecourseofferingstomeettheneedsofmorestudents,andenablingless
experiencedstudentstotakemusiclessonswithmoreexperiencedstudents.Oneadministratoralso
notedthatthereisresearchindicatingthatheterogeneousgroupingisbeneficialtolearning.
Achallengeraisedbymultipleadministratorswasthatteachingmultiplelevelsatthesametime
requiresteacherstospendmuchmoretimepreparingandtohaveahigherlevelofinstructionalskill.
Moreover,theteachersattentionisdivided,solesstimeisavailabletodeepenthelearningofstudents
ateachlevel.Oneadministratorsaidthatthisisparticularlytrueforthemoreadvancedstudentsinthe
room,whotendtogetlessattentionfromtheteacherandhavetoworkmoreindependently.
Theadministratorswereaskedwhetherthelevelofacademicsupportavailabletoeachstudenthas
declinedduringthepast15years.Twooutoffiveadministratorssaidyes,andtheyratedthedeclines
asmoderateandmoderate/extensive(Table21).
Table21:HastheLevelofAcademicSupportDeclinedinthePast15Years?
Yes
No
2
3
Minimal
Min/Mod
Moderate
Mod/Ext
Extensive
0
0
1
1
0
Oftheadministratorswhosaidthatacademicsupportserviceshavenotbeencut,oneexplainedthat
staffreductionshavebeenpartlyoffsetbysupportsprovidedthroughincreaseduseoftechnology.For
example,extensiveuseofGoogleDocsallowsteacherstoprovidemuchmorefeedbackonwriting
assignmentsthaninthepast.Hesaidthatthisalsoreducestheburdenonteacherstoprovideafter
schoolmeetingswithstudents,becausethefeedbackcanhappenatanytime,atleastforstudentswho
haveaccesstotheneededtechnologyathome.
Oneadministratorwhosaidthatthelevelofacademicsupporthasdeclinedsaidtheelementaryschools
inhistownusedtohavemathematics,science,andreadingspecialists,butthemathematicsandscience
positionswerecut.Thespecialistshadtakensomestudentsoutoftheclassroomanddideither
remedialoradvancedworkwiththem,anopportunitythatisnolongeravailable.Theother
administratorsaidthatparaprofessionalshavebeencutinsomedistricts,andthat,
Theyvehadtocutbacktojustkeepteachersinclassrooms,andalotoftheextra
stuff[suchas]theextraparaprofessionalsforsomeprogramoranotherhashadto
beeliminatedascutshaveeliminatedoneserviceafteranother,untilitsreallyjustthe
teachersintheclassroomswiththestudentswhoarethelastonesstanding.Thatsan
36
overgeneralization,butthatsprettymuchwhatIveseenasbudgetsinsometowns
haveneededtobecutyearafteryearafteryear.
Thisadministratorsaidthattheneedsofmanystudentsaregreat,andthatithasbecomeharderto
teacheffectivelywithoutthesupportofacoteacherorparaprofessional.Henotedthatthisdoesnot
applytostudentswithIEPs,becausetheyarestillprovidedwiththesupportssetoutbytheirIEP.
Extracurricularofferings.Allfiveadministratorssaidthatextracurricularorcocurricular
programsandserviceshadbeenreducedinthepast15years.Theyeachratedthedeclinesdifferently,
fromminimaltoextensive(Table22).Awidevarietyofcutsweredescribed,mostlyatthesecondary
level,whichintervieweessaidiswherethemostextracurricularactivitiesaretypicallyoffered.However,
oneadministratorreportedanincreaseinafterschoolactivitiesattheelementaryandmiddleschool
levels,mostlygrantfunded.
Table22:HaveExtracurricularandCocurricularPrograms
andServicesBeenReducedinthePast15Years?
Yes
No
5
0
Minimal
Min/Mod
Moderate
Mod/Ext
Extensive
1
1
1
1
1
Oneadministratorreportedasubstantialdecreaseinthenumberofsportsbeingoffered,andthatover
thepast15yearsthecountyhasdeclinedfrom12footballteamsto6andfrom10hockeyteamsto3.
Tosomeextentthishasbeenoffsetbyschoolscooping(sharing)teams.Anotheradministratorsaid
thatjuniorvarsitysportsweremostvulnerableandhadbeencutmostextensively.
Artsandacademicsupportprogramsalsoexperiencedcutsinsomedistricts,withfewerafterschool
activitiessuchasdramaandoutdooractivityclubs.Onedistrictreportedcuttingmusicteachers,
combiningbandandorchestragroupsacrossschools,andreducingthenumberofstudentswhowere
abletotakemusiclessonsatschool.
Multipleintervieweesreportedthatlatebuseswerereducedoreliminated,whichmadeitdifficultfor
somestudentstoparticipate,particularlyindistrictsthatspannedlarge,ruralareas.Moreschoolsalso
beganchargingparticipationfeesinthepast15years,whichreportedlydiscouragedsomestudents
fromparticipating,eventhoughfeewaiverswereofferedforstudentswithdemonstratedneed.
Studentsupportservices.TheadministratorswereaskedwhetherBerkshireCountyschool
districtshaveneededtoreducestudentsupportservicesinthepast15years.Threeoutoffivesaid
yes,andtheyratedthedeclinesfromminimaltomoderate(Table23).Thetwoadministratorswho
saidnoreportedthatstaffingofguidancecounselors,schooladjustmentcounselors,andspeechand
languagespecialistshadeitherincreasedorstayedlevel.Thedeclinesreportedbytheotherthree
administratorsincludedstaffreductionsofguidancecounselors,schooladjustmentcounselors,special
37
educationparaprofessionals,andafterschoolprogramcoordinators,aswellasparaprofessionalsbeing
assignedlargercaseloads.Insomecasesthereductionswereproportionaltodeclinesinstudent
enrollment,butinothercasestheyrepresentedareducedlevelofsupportperstudent.One
administratornotedthatthesechangeswerepartlydrivenbythemovementtowardinclusion,sothe
staffingchangessupportedthepositivegoalofmainstreaming.
Table23:HaveStudentSupportServicesBeenReducedinthePast15Years?
Yes
No
3
2
Minimal
Min/Mod
Moderate
Mod/Ext
Extensive
2
0
1
0
0
Twoadministratorsemphasizedthatthecutswerefocusedonthegeneralstudentpopulation,andthat
mandatedsupportsforstudentswithIEPshadnotdeclined.However,athirdadministrator,whoasked
forthecommenttoremainanonymous,saidthatbudgetpressureshadsometimesinfluencedhowIEPs
werewritten,withfewersupportswrittenintotheIEPthanastudentactuallyneeded.Two
administratorsnotedthattheneedsofregulareducationstudentshavegrowninthepast15yearsin
areassuchassocialemotionalfunctioning,executivefunctioning,andsensoryprocessing.Manyof
thesestudentsdonothaveIEPsbutstillrequireahigherlevelofsupportservices.Asaresult,evenif
staffinglevelshavenotdeclined,thelevelofdemandonstaffhasincreased.
Qualityofeducationalopportunity.Fourofthefiveadministratorsbelievedthatthequalityof
educationalopportunityinBerkshireCountyhaddeclinedinthepast15years.Oneadministratorsaid
thatqualityhasbeenaffectedtremendously,andanothersaidthattheopportunitytohavestudents
graduateatthehighestpossiblelevelofacademicperformancehasbeensacrificed.Theysaidthatan
importantgoalofhighschoolistoexposestudentstomanydifferentfieldssotheyunderstandtheir
optionsintheworld,butmanyoftheopportunitiestoexploretechnology,fineandperformingarts,and
vocationalareashavebeenreducedoreliminatedatboththemiddleandhighschoollevelsinthepast
15years.Oneadministratorsaidthatmanystudentsmotivationforengaginginschoolisathletics,arts,
anddrama,soreductionsinthoseareasnegativelyaffecttheirattendanceandacademicwork.One
administratoraddedthatTheeducationalopportunitiesinBerkshireCountyareveryunequal,and
thatsometownscanaffordmorestaffingandresourcesthanothers,agapthathebelieveshaswidened
inthepast15years.Hetiedthisinparttothefactthatsometownstakemanyschoolchoicestudents,
whichhesaidcanresultindeepbudgetcutsinthesendingdistricts.Overall,theseadministrators
believedthatopportunitieshavediminishedforstudentswhoarepreparingforcollegeandthosewho
arepreparingtogodirectlyintocareersafterhighschool.
Theoneadministratorwhosaidthatthelevelofacademicopportunityhasnotdeclinedattributeditto
increaseduseoftechnology,suchasonlinecourses.Thesecourseshaveenabledstudentstoworkmore
independently,withsupportandfacilitationfromateacher,particularlywhenonlyafewstudentswant
totakeaparticularcourse.
38
Collegereadinessandadmissions.Threeofthefiveadministratorsfeltthatdeclinesin
educationalandextracurricularopportunitiesinBerkshireCountyoverthepast15yearshavereduced
studentscompetitivenessincollegeadmissions.Oneadministratorwasunsure,andonesaidthatthe
percentageofstudentsgoingtocollegeandtheselectivityofthecollegestowhichtheyareadmittedis
atleastashighasitwas15yearsago.Administratorswhofeltthatstudentscollegeprospectshave
diminishedsaidthatcollegeadmissionsofficerstrytotakeintoaccountthecourseofferingsand
extracurricularactivitiesthatwereavailabletoastudent,butthatallotherthingsequal,collegeswill
preferstudentswhohavecompletedmoreadvancedcoursework.Oneadministratorsaid,Thediploma
isnotasrigorousasitusedtobe,sosomeofthecollegestheywanttoattendmaynotbereachable.
Courseofferingsandenrollment.Documentingchangesinschoolscourseofferingsovertimeis
onewaythattheTaskForcewantstoassesstrendsrelatedtoeducationalquality.Asonestepinthis
process,theyaskedallBerkshireCountyschooldistrictsthathavehighschoolstoprovidecourse
enrollmentdataandaprogramofstudiesforthe201516schoolyear.Thesedatawillserveasa
baselinefromwhichfuturechangescanbedocumented.
Datawerereceivedfrom9districts,showingcourseenrollmentsin10ofthecountys12highschools.
Thedatawerereceivedinavarietyofformats,whichUMDIconvertedtoanExcelspreadsheetwitha
worksheetforeachhighschool.TheTaskForceagreedthattwosetsofanalyseswouldbeconducted
withthecourseenrollmentdatatoestablishabaselineinrelationtoeducationalquality,specifically
withregardtoAdvancedPlacement(AP)andhonorscourses(Tables24and25)
ThenumberofAPcoursesofferedperhighschoolrangedfrom7to19,withanaverageclasssize
rangingfrom5studentsatLenoxHighSchoolto16studentsatDruryandPittsfieldHighSchools.A
measureofthelevelofAPcourseparticipationistheaveragenumberofAPcoursestakenperstudent,
andthisrangedfrom0.16atMcCannTechnicalSchoolto0.78atLeeHighSchool.
Thenumberofhonorscoursesofferedrangedfrom12to39,withanaverageclasssizerangingfrom10
studentsatLenoxMemorialto20studentsatHoosacValley.Ameasureofthelevelofhonorscourse
participationistheaveragenumberofhonorscoursestakenperstudent,andthisrangedfrom0.75at
McCannto2.88atLenoxMemorial.UnlikeAPcourses,coursesdesignatedashonorsdonothavean
externallyspecifiedcurriculumorexamandarethereforelikelytobelesssimilaracrossschools.
39
Table24:APCourseOfferingsandEnrollmentbyDistrictandHighSchool,201516SchoolYear
Students
Courses
AP
Average
In
AP
With
AP
Total
Courses
AP
Grades Courses Enrolled
Course
APCourse
Per
Class
DistrictandHighSchool
912
Listed Students Sections Enrollment Student
Size
AdamsCheshire(Hoosac)
BerkshireHills(Monument)
C.Berkshire(Wahconah)
Lee(LeeHighSchool)
Lenox(LenoxMemorial)
Mt.Greylock(Mt.Greylock)
N.BerkshireTech(McCann)
NorthAdams(Drury)
Pittsfield(PittsfieldHS)
Pittsfield(TaconicHS)
1
345
539
552
236
214
343
481
342
896
731
11
10
13
12
15
13
7
8
19
15
11
10
12
12
13
13
7
8
19
15
12
13
141
13
18
19
7
16
29
25
165
167
190
184
95
244
78
249
460
280
0.48
0.31
0.34
0.78
0.44
0.71
0.16
0.73
0.51
0.38
14
13
14
14
5
13
11
16
16
11
Toestimatethenumberofsections,amaximumsectionsizeof25wasassumed.
Table25:HonorsCourseOfferingsandEnrollmentbyDistrictandHighSchool,201516SchoolYear
Students
Courses
Total
Honors Average
In
Honors
With
Honors
Honors
Courses Honors
Grades Courses Enrolled
Course
Course
Per
Class
DistrictandHighSchool
912
Listed Students Sections Enrollment Student
Size
345
14
14
16
317
0.92
20
AdamsCheshire(Hoosac)
539
26
26
53
975
1.81
18
BerkshireHills(Monument)
2
1
552
29
28
44
646
1.17
15
C.Berkshire(Wahconah)
236
12
12
18
318
1.35
18
Lee(LeeHighSchool)
214
39
36
61
616
2.88
10
Lenox(LenoxMemorial)
1
343
12
12
24
430
1.25
18
Mt.Greylock(Mt.Greylock)
481
12
12
21
359
0.75
17
N.BerkshireTech(McCann)
342
13
13
25
486
1.42
19
NorthAdams(Drury)
896
33
33
60
1003
1.12
17
Pittsfield(PittsfieldHS)
731
33
33
62
750
1.03
12
Pittsfield(TaconicHS)
1
Somecoursesatthesetwoschoolscouldbetakenateitheranhonorsorcollegepreplevel,butthenumberof
studentsineachcategorycouldnotbedeterminedfromthedataprovided.Studentsinthesecourseswere
countedatthecollegepreplevel,sothelevelofhonorscourseparticipationislikelyunderestimated.
2
Toestimatethenumberofsections,amaximumsectionsizeof25wasassumed.
Whenmultipleyearsofcourseenrollmentdataareavailable,manyadditionalanalysescouldbe
conductedtoassesschangesinprogramofferingsovertime.Onechallengewiththedatasetsprovided
forthisstudywastheirnonstandardizednature,makingitdifficulttoconductvalidanalysesand
comparisonswithregardtoindicatorssuchascourselevelandclasssize.Ifschoolsinthecountywantto
participateinlongitudinalanalysesoftheircourseofferings,ESEsStudentCourseSchedule(SCS)
40
datasetmayprovidemorethoroughandaccuratedataandfacilitatemoremeaningfulcomparisons
acrossdistricts.MassachusettsschoolsdistrictssubmitstandardizedSCScoursedatatoESEannually,
includingcoursesubject,courselevel,gradesandcreditsearned,andotherinformationforeach
studentscourses.UMDIlookedintoaccessingSCSforthisstudy,butdoingsowouldhaverequired
undertakingaprocesstoobtainpermissionfromeachdistrict;theTaskForcepreferredtousethe
coursedatathatdistrictshadalreadyprovided.
5.PastandFutureStrategiesforImprovingFinancialSustainability
Duringtheadministratorinterviews,districtsreportedthattheyhadalreadyengagedinnumerous
strategiestoreducecostsandthattheyplannedtoimplementadditionalstrategiesinthefuture.This
sectionpresentsthosestrategiesfirstinrelationtotwooftheTaskForceshighestprioritychange
strategiessharedservicesandconsolidation.Thenseveraladditionalstrategiesarepresentedrelated
tostaffing,specialeducation,transportation,technology,energycosts,schoolclosings,grantwriting,
officespace,andvolunteers.
Sharedservices.TheinterviewswithBerkshireCountyschooladministratorsfoundthatdistricts
arealreadyparticipatinginmanysharedserviceeffortsandwanttocontinueandexpandtheseefforts.
Respondingtoquestionsaboutsharedservices,oneadministratorsaid,Becauseofthesizeofour
districtsandthecostofeducationoverall,ifwedontactandhavetheseconversationsandreachoutto
eachother,werenotgoingtobeabletosustainwhatweretryingtodo.Wecantbeaseparate
entity.Alsowithregardtosharedservices,anotheradministratorsaid,Wehavegreathopeinthe
regionaltaskforcedoingsomebigthings,becausewerereallystrugglingtomakemuchheadwayin
termsofsmallerscalepartnershipsthatreallyextendtoactualstudentservices.
SharedservicesarealreadytakingplaceamongsomeBerkshireCountydistrictswithregardtospecial
educationservices,healthcareservices,personnel,professionaldevelopment,andathletics.Inaddition,
twogroupsofdistrictsaremeetingtoplanfordeepeningimplementationofsharedservices.Finally,
onedistrictdescribedsavingmoneythroughcollaborationwithcommunitypartnersandothercityand
countyagencies.
Regionalefforts.TwodistrictsdescribedtheSouthernBerkshireSharedServicesProjectasa
groupofsixdistrictsinsouthernBerkshireCountythathavebeentryingtoshareservicesrelatedto
technology,curriculum,professionaldevelopment,grantwriting,andpotentiallyspecialeducation
services.Onedistrictreportedthatthegroupreceived$75,000fromthegovernorscommunity
compactprogramandanother$75,000fromlocalphilanthropiesandbankstoadvancetheir
collaboration.Withregardtotechnology,theyarelookingacrossallsixdistrictsathardware,software,
andcurriculum,andseekingeconomiesofscaleinpurchasingandtechnicalsupport.Withregardto
grantwriting,theyhavediscussedhiringagrantwritertoaccessfundsthatwouldbebeneficialtoallsix
districts.Oneofthedistrictssaidthattheyhopethiscollaborationwillnotonlyyieldfinancialsavings
41
butalsobuildtrustacrossdistricts,whichwillserveasafoundationfordeepercollaborationovertime
orpossiblyeventualregionalization.
OnedistrictalsomentionedasubgroupofdistrictsinnorthernBerkshireCountythatwasorganizedby
theTaskForceandhadmettwiceasofMay2016.Thisdistrictexpressedinterestinworkingwithother
districtsinrelationtospecialeducationservicesandpossiblystudenttransportation.Theworkisstillin
thediscussionphase,withnoformalagreementsyet.
Specialeducationservices.PittsfieldsaidBerkshireCountyhasastrongrecordofcollaboration
withregardtospecialeducationservices.Theysawthisasamajorsuccess,becausetheybelievethatit
resultsinbetterservicesatalowercost.AdamsCheshirereportedsendingspecialeducationstudents
tospecializedclassroomsinPittsfieldandNorthAdamsinthepast,althoughtheyreportedthattheyare
unabletodosocurrently.NorthernBerkshireUnionreportedthatbecausetheirdistrictissosmall,they
donthavesomeneededspecialeducationprogramsinternallyandneedtotuitionsomeoftheir
studentsintoNorthAdams.
Healthcareservices.Multipledistrictsreportednegotiatingcollectivelyforhealthcareservices
throughtheBerkshireHealthGroup,whichdescribesitselfasAMassachusettsmunicipaljoint
purchasegrouporganizedunderMGLCh.32B,Section12andlistsseveralBerkshireCountytownsand
schooldistrictsamongitsmembers.11BerkshireHillsreportedthatincollaborationwiththeircollective
bargainingunitandtheBerkshireHealthGrouptheywereabletomovetoaplanthatsavedthedistrict
severalhundredthousanddollarsperyearandalsoreducedcostsforemployees.
Sharingsuperintendents.BerkshireHillsandShakerMountainaresharingasuperintendent
startinginthe201617schoolyear.Bothdistrictsanticipatedmodestcostsavingsthroughcreating
efficienciessuchasreducingduplicativeefforts.ShakerMountainalsoanticipatedthatthearrangement
willprovidesomeadditionalservicesatthedistrictlevelincludingcurriculumandbusinessmanagement
supports.Bothdistrictsnoted,however,thattheworkdonepreviouslybyafulltimesuperintendentin
BerkshireHillsanda0.6fulltimeequivalentsuperintendentinShakerHillscouldnotbeaccomplished
byasingleindividual.LenoxandLeealsoexploredhavingasharedsuperintendentin2016,although
theydecidedagainstdoingso.InanarticleintheBerkshireEaglenewspaper,theLenoxSchool
Committeechairmanwasquotedassaying,Theresnobenefittohaving[ourcurrentsuperintendent]
onlyhalftimeunlesswehavesomebodytobackfillthepartsofthejobhecantdobecausehedspend
halftimeinLee.[Postponingtheprocess]willgiveustimetoexplorethosekindsofthingsaswellas
sharedservicesinotherareas(Fanto,2016).ThearticlealsonotedthatTheBerkshireHillsandLee
schoolboardsapprovedalegalmemoranduminJanuarylayingoutguidelinesforexploringshared
services.TheLeeandLenoxschoolcommitteeshadsignedasimilaragreementlastfall.
11
http://berkshirehg.com/wpcontent/uploads/2014/05/bhgFactSheet0127161.pdf
42
Sharingotherpersonnel.Lee,Lenox,andBerkshireHillshaveformalsharedserviceagreements
forservicesthatareoutsideofthecollectivebargainingagreement,includingtechnologydirector,
curriculumdirector,andfoodservicedirector.BerkshireHillssharestheirpsychologistwithShaker
Mountainafewdayspermonth.PittsfieldhasoneoftheonlyRETELL12specialistsinthecountyand
sharesthatspecialistsserviceswithotherdistrictsatcost.Oneadministratoralsothoughtthatthe
districtwassharingphysicaltherapyandoccupationaltherapyserviceswithanotherdistrict.
Professionaldevelopment.CentralBerkshirereportedthattheMassachusettsCollegeofLiberal
ArtsinNorthAdamsorganizescountywideprofessionaldevelopmentforphysicaleducationteachers,
nurses,andotherspecialists.Theysaidthattheofferingsareusuallyhostedatoneofthecounty
schools,arecosteffectiveforthecountyandtheschools,andallowstafftohavemorecustomizedand
collegialprofessionaldevelopmentthanwouldbepossibleatthelevelofasingledistrict(whichmight
haveonlyasinglenurse,forexample).Pittsfieldalsoreportedthattheyworkwithotherdistrictsand
thesuperintendentsroundtabletoofferprofessionaldevelopmentworkshopsacrossdistricts.(Central
BerkshireandPittsfieldmayhavebeenreferringtothesameinitiatives.)
Athletics.Manydistrictsreportedthattheyareengagedincoopathleticteamswithother
districts,inanattempttoreducecosts,increasestudentparticipation,andoffersportsforwhichthey
wouldnototherwisehaveenoughparticipantstofieldacompetitiveteam.Somedistrictsanticipated
thatdecliningenrollmentwouldleadtoadditionalcoopteamarrangements.
Communityandgovernmentpartners.Whenaskedaboutreducingcoststhroughshared
services,Pittsfieldreportedonthreeeffortsthatinvolvedcommunityandgovernmentpartnersrather
thanotherschooldistricts.First,lastyeartheytransitionedateenparentingprogramthathadbeenin
thedistrictfor25yearsoutoftheircollectivebargainingagreementandintoacommunitynonprofitand
savedabout$100,000asaresultofthechange.Second,theyhavecontractedwithacommunity
organizationtoofferaparentchildhomeprogramthathadpreviouslybeenundertheircollective
bargainingagreement.Third,theyaretryingtocontractwiththesheriffsofficetostaffatruantofficer
positionthatcurrentlyhasa$100,000impactontheschooldistrictsbudget.
Plansforadditionalsharedservices.Severaldistrictsalsodiscussedsharedservice
arrangementsthattheyhopetocreateinthefuture.Specialeducationserviceswerementionedmost
often;oneadministratornotedthatspecialeducationcostsarerisingastronomicallyandthatresearch
wouldbehelpfultoidentifypromisingwaystoshareservicesandtransportation.ShakerMountainmay
beengaginginsharedserviceswithBerkshireHillsbeginningSY17aroundinformationtechnologyand
possiblycafeteriamanagement.CurrentlyShakerMountainhasnoinformationtechnologysupport
otherthanwithaprivatecontractoranddoesnotgetthetimelinessofhelpthattheysometimesneed.
TheyarehopingtohiretheinformationtechnologypersonnelfromBerkshireHillsparttime,whichthey
12
AMassachusettsinitiativetoaddresstheacademicproficiencyofEnglishlanguagelearners.Itrequiresspecializedtrainingof
manyteachersandadministrators.
43
anticipatewouldresultinasimilarcosttotheprivatecontractorbutahigherlevelofservice.Other
areasmentionedforfuturesharedservicesincludedpayrollservices,backofficesupport,and
collaborativepurchasingofsupplies.
Oneareawhererespondentsofferedconflictingperspectiveswaswithregardtosharedtransportation
services.NorthAdamsmentionedthepotentialforsavingsinspecialeducationtransportation.
Leementionedresearchintospecialeducationtransportationfromyearsagowhichfoundthatthelong
distancesbetweendistrictsmeantthat,inmanycases,additionaltransportationcostswoulderaseany
costssavedbysendingstudentstoaprograminanotherdistrict.Withregardtogeneralstudent
transportation,NorthernBerkshireVocationalsaidthatyearsagotherewassomediscussionofa
regionaltransportationeffort,butitwasgoingtocostmorethanthedistrictsexistingsystem,inpart
becauseofthenumberofroutesandlatebusesinthecontract.
Anotherissuerelevanttodevelopingsharedserviceswascollectivebargainingagreements.Asalready
noted,Lee,Lenox,andBerkshireHillshaveformalsharedserviceagreementsforservicesthatare
outsideofthecollectivebargainingagreement,includingtechnologydirector,curriculumdirector,and
foodservicedirector.Thesuperintendentreportedthatimplementingsharedservicesarrangements
moredeeplywouldhaverequiredrenegotiatingthecollectivebargainingagreement,whichthey
avoidedbecauseitwouldhavetakenmuchlonger.Instead,theydecidedtoimplementsomeshared
servicechangesoutsideofthecollectivebargainingagreement,whichcouldbedonequicklyandwould
establishsomesuccessesontheground.Theyhopedtosubsequentlypromotesharedservice
arrangementsashavingbenefitsforunionpersonnel,pointingtojobsthathadbeensaved.
Multipleadministratorstalkedaboutestablishingfactsonthegroundwithregardtosharedservicesas
animportantfirststepinlargercollaborativeeffortswithinthecounty.Onesuperintendentexplained
thatthefinancialchallengesaregoingtocontinue,sothestatusquocannotcontinuewithout
jeopardizingthecurrentlevelofprogramsandservices.Therefore,hefeltthatincreasedlevelsof
collaboration,regionalization,and/orsharedserviceswillbenecessaryovertime.Intheshortterm,his
districtisfocusingonsharedservices,becauseitseemsliketheeasiestthingtogetdone.Buttheschool
committeeislookinginamoredetailedwayintopursuingregionalizationacrossmultipledistricts,or
creatinganeducationalcollaborative.
Schooldistrictconsolidation.TheinterviewswithBerkshireCountyschooladministrators
revealedavarietyofperspectiveswithregardtodistrictconsolidation.Althoughmultipleinterviewees
recognizedthepotentialneedforit,noonedescribeddeterminedcurrenteffortstoexpandregional
agreementswithotherdistricts.TheworkoftheTaskForcemayinfluencethisdynamic,becauseinthe
nextphaseofthisresearchtheyplantomodelthelikelyimpactsoffurtherregionalizationon
educationalqualityandcosts.
Themostrecenteffortinthecountythatsoughttochangeregionalaffiliationswasanattemptby
AdamsCheshireinAugust2015toattractthe180studentsthatLanesboroughsendstoMt.Greylock
44
RegionalHighSchoolinWilliamstown.AdamsCheshireofferedalowertuitionratethattheysaidwould
havesavedLanesboroughabout$1.6millionperyear,asubstantialsumforbothtowns(Guerino,2015).
Lanesboroughdeclinedtheoffer,withtheschoolcommitteechairwomansaying,Notanywherehave
theyshownusanythingtheycaneducationallyprovideforusthatsbetterthanwhatwehave.Werein
theeducationbusiness,notthemoneybusiness(Dravis,2015).AdamsCheshiresuperintendentKristen
Gordonsaid,
Weallputourbestfootforward,andwehadsomesincereinterestfromneighboring
communitiesthatweresimilarenoughinpopulationthatitwouldhaveworkedwell.
Butitwaspoliticallyuntenable.Butwerealwayslistening.ThatspartofwhattheTask
Forceisabout.Therearealwaysrumorsaboutthenextdistrictover.Andwereall
watchingeachother.Imean,thereareacoupleof[obvious]matchesinthecounty,and
wevebeenwatching[thosematches]nothappenforyearsnow,andyousortofthink,
Iftheycantfigureitout,howintheworldarewegoingtodoit?
Severaldistrictstalkedaboutpossibilitiesforfutureregionalization.Leereportedthattheyarefocusing
onsharedservicesfirst,becauseitstheeasiestthingtogetdone,buttheyarealsolookinginto
pursuingregionalizationacrossmultipledistricts,orcreatinganeducationalcollaborative.Atthesame
time,superintendentAlSkrockihaddoubtsthatregionalizingwouldsavemoney,basedonresearchhe
hadseen,aswellasthedistrictscurrentlevelofadministrativestaffing.Heexplainedthatyoucannot
justcombinesuperintendentsthewayyoucaninsomelargercitiesortowns,becausetheBerkshire
Countydistrictsdonthavemanymiddlemanagerssuchasassistantsuperintendentsandcurriculum
directors.Hebelievedthatpotentialsavingsareminimal,andtheendresultwouldbeacompromiseof
services.Hecautionedagainsttaxpayersandtownmeetingmembersseekingshorttermsavingsthat
mighthavelongtermnegativeimpacts.
Mt.GreylocksaidthattheyhavetalkedaboutsharingserviceswithShakerMountain.PrincipalMary
MacDonaldsaidthatwouldmakesensegeographically,becausetheyareallonthewesternsideof
MountGreylock,andthattheyhavenotreallytalkedwithAdamsandNorthAdamsbecausethereisa
bigmountainbetweenthem.
ShakerMountainsaidthatifenrollmentatHancockElementarySchoolcontinuestodecline,suchas
fromitscurrent44studentsingradesPreK6downto34students,theschoolmaycloseandstudents
wouldbetuitionedintootherdistricts,probablyWilliamstownorLanesborough.ButprincipalTracy
Tierneynotedthatsometownresidents,particularlythosewhosechildrenattendtheschool,feelthatit
isacentralinstitutioninthetownandwouldwanttokeepitopenregardlessofthelevelofenrollment.
TheotherschoolintheregionalShakerMountainSchoolUnion,RichmondConsolidatedSchool,
reportedthattheschoolhasadequateenrollmentcurrentlyduetoalargepercentageofschoolchoice
students.PrincipalMonicaZaninexplainedthatifthetownpopulationdeclined,thedistrictwouldneed
todecidewhetherornottocontinueexpandingthenumberofschoolchoicestudents.Alternatively,
45
theywouldconsiderclosingthemiddleschoolgradesandtuitioningthosestudentstootherdistricts.
Shesaidthatacommitteeinthetownassessedthisissueandconcludedthatclosingtheschoolwould
notsavethetownmoney.Shealsonotedthatthepopulationtrendlooksfavorableifyouconsiderthe
PreKclass,whichislargerthanusualthisyear.
TheNorthernBerkshireUniondistrictsaidthatClarksburghasanoldbuildingandiscurrently
consideringabuildingprojectthroughtheMassachusettsSchoolBuildingAuthority.SuperintendentJon
Levexplainedthatiftherenovationhappensandthetownhasanewbuilding,itmightbecomevery
attractiveforschoolchoicestudentsfromothertowns.Hesaidthatiftherenovationdoesnothappen,
theschoolwillprobablycloseandthetownwillprobablysenditsstudentstoNorthAdams.Withregard
toothertownsintheunion,henotedthatFlorida,Rowe,andSavoywilllikelyopttosustaintheirsmall
schoolsofabout40to90studentseach,andthatHeathstudentsmightbeginattendingtheRowe
ElementarySchool.(RoweandHeathareinFranklinCounty,butRoweispartofaBerkshireCounty
regionalschooldistrict.)
SouthernBerkshireandFarmingtonRiverbothregionaldistrictsalreadyhavehadinitialdiscussions
aboutregionalizingwitheachotherbutdescribedtheeffortsasverypreliminary.FarmingtonRiverhas
onlyaPreK6elementaryschool,soittuitionsitsstudentsingrades712tootherdistricts,butthelong
distancetotheSouthernBerkshiremiddleschoolandhighschoolmeansthatmoststudentsgotoother
districtsinstead.FarmingtonRiversuperintendentJoAnnAustinsaysthatthetwodistrictsmayshare
professionaldevelopment,technology,andsupportservices,butcurrentlytheyarenotdiscussing
mergingtotheextentofhavingonlyonesuperintendent.
BerkshireHillssuperintendentPeterDillonsaidthatconversationsaboutregionalizingmighthappen
later,butIthinkwehavetobuildtrustanddemonstratethatwecanworktogetherfirst.Central
BerkshiresuperintendentLaurieCasnasaidthattheirschoolcommitteesometimesdiscussescloser
collaborationwithotherdistricts,butthedistrictisfairlylarge(1600students)andhasalreadyreduced
somepersonnel,sotheyfeelthatthereislessneedtocollaborate.NorthernBerkshireRegional
VocationalTechnicalsuperintendentJamesBrosnannotedthathisdistrictalreadyrepresentsnine
townsandprobablywouldnotsavemoneybyregionalizingwithotherdistricts.TheprincipalofDrury
HighSchoolinNorthAdams,AmyMeehan,saidthattherehasbeeninformaltalkonsocialmediaabout
possiblyconsolidatingwithotherhighschools,butnoformaldialogue.Oneadministratorcautioned
that,
Officialconversations[aboutconsolidation]needtohappeninaverythoughtfulway.
Highschoolsaretheflagshipsofmanycommunities,sowhenyoutalkaboutThisschool
isbetterforthisandThatschoolisbetterforthat,thatcanbereallydangeroustothe
educationclimatewhenteachersareworriedaboutlosingtheirjobs,oracommunityis
worriedaboutlosingsomethingthatisverynearanddeartothem.Thatcanbevery
dangerous,especiallyifthereareconversationsbybusinessleaders,orpoliticians,
46
withoutreallyunderstandingsomeoftheintricaciesofrelationshipsandthe
demographicsofeachcommunity.
Administratorsweretoldthattheycouldrequestforanyoftheirinterviewcommentstoremain
anonymous,butonlyoneadministratormadethisrequestinthefirstroundofinterviews.Itwasin
relationtoconcernsaboutmergingwithdistrictsofdifferentperformancelevels.Theadministratorsaid,
WhileIseethevalueofcoordinating[withotherdistricts]fromaneconomic
standpoint,andIknowthattheprincipalsandsuperintendentsoftheseother
communitieswantthebestfortheirstudents,Idontthinkwecandiscount.thatmy
aspirations[formyschool]canbehigherbecauseofwhatmycommunityissupporting.
AndIdontwanttoseethatchallengedformystudents.Iknowthatoneofthefocuses
istohavesomeequityacrosstheregionwithregardtoservicesandprogramming,and
Imallforequity,butIwanteveryonetoriseup.Idontwantourschooltoloseits
advancedacademicprograms,itsextracurricularprograms.Imtryingtobeas
diplomaticaspossible.Iliketheideaofsharingideasandfiguringouthowwecanshare
resources,butIdontwanttodoitinawaythatsgoingtodiminishtheopportunities
thatthestudentsatourschoolhave.
ThecommentImtryingtobeasdiplomaticaspossiblemakestheawkwardnessofdiscussingthis
topicapparent.However,theissuewillbepresentforsomestakeholderswhetherornotitisdiscussed
openly,soitisimportanttodiscusswhenattemptingtoregionalizedistricts.Inalettertotheeditorin
theBerkshireEagleentitledIgnoredisinformation,supportMt.Greylockplan,thewritersaiditmore
directly.Referencingthestatesannualratingsofschoolperformance,fromlevels1(highest)to5
(lowest)hewroteaboutAdamsCheshiresattemptstoattractLanesboroughstudents,Parents
respondedinnearlyunanimousoppositiontotheideaoftradingoutofaLevel1schoolintoaLevel3
forafewpromiseddollars(Moors,2016).
Oneothercategoryofcommentsfromtheadministratorinterviewsreferencedtheimportanceofissues
otherthancostsavingsindeterminingschooldistrictconfigurations.Oneprincipalsaid,Ithinkthat
[regionalization]needstobedonenotpurelyasacostsavingsmeasure,butalsoaskingHowdoyou
maximizeeducationalopportunitiesforstudents?Ithinkthatneedstobetheguidingquestion,notjust
thebottomdollar.Anotherprincipalfromaruraldistrictdescribedthevalueofbeinginasmallschool
inabeautifulsettingwithdeeplycommittedstaff,evenifitwassomewhatmoreexpensive,andevenif
theywereunabletoofferasmanycurricularoptionsaslargerschools.ArecentarticleintheBerkshire
EagleabouttheissueofclosingtheRichmondConsolidatedElementarySchool,describedacandidate
fortheschoolcommitteemakingasimilarpoint,basedonbothfinancesandtheschoolsroleinthe
community:
shesaidthatifelected,shewouldexploreeveryoptiontokeeptheschoolopen.I
recognizethefinancialobligationsthatmightbeimposedandthefactthatthe
47
communityviewsneedtobeproperlyidentifiedandassessed.Whilethedemographics
ofthetownmaybechanging,shepointedout,itisimportanttoconsiderwhetherthat
meansthatthefabricandidentityofthetownshouldchangeaswell.Notingnearly200
yearsofcontinuousschooloperationinthetown,[she]declared:Thatsayssomething
abouthowingrainedtheschoolpresencehasbeeninthefabricoftownlife.Itis
importanttofindoutwhetherthecommunityviewsthisasjustadollarsandcentsissue
orsomethingmoreintegraltowhatmakesourtownsospecialtoallofusthathave
chosentolivehere.
Issuesofeducationalqualityareclearlyparamounttomanystakeholdersandmustbeprioritized
alongsidefinancialconsiderationswhenexploringpotentialregionalizationprocesses.
Othercostsavingstrategies.Thefollowingstrategiestoreducecostswerealsoreportedduring
theadministratorinterviews.
Specialeducation.Severaldistrictshadreducedprivateoroutofdistrictspecialeducation
placements.Onedistrictdescribedaspecialeducationclassroomwith11students,staffedbyateacher
andthreeparaprofessionals,thatcostlessthanapreviousresidentialplacementforjust1ofthe11
students.Thelocalclassroomwasalsodescribedasabetteroutcomeforfamilieswhowantedtheir
childtobelocatedclosertohome.
Energycosts.BerkshireHillscontractedwithanewsolarenergyproviderthattheyestimatewill
savethem$80,000peryearforthenext2025years.SouthernBerkshire,inaprojectsupportedbythe
MassachusettsSchoolBuildingAuthority,installednewboilersthatcanusepellets,oil,orgas,
whicheverischeapestinagivenyear.Theyestimatethissavedthemabout$50,000infuelcostsduring
the201516schoolyear.Multipledistrictsreportedswitchingtolessexpensivelightingfixtures,saving
asubstantialportionoftheirelectricbill.Oneschoolreportedmakingthischangewithgrantsupport
fromtheNationalGridelectricalcompany.
Closingschools.NorthAdamsclosedamiddleschool,saving$1.2millionannually.Thebuilding
wasthenrenovatedandreopened,replacingoneoftheirelementaryschools.SouthernBerkshire
closedaoneroomschoolhouseinMontereythatinrecentyearshadonlyaboutsixstudents,andwhich
hadnostudentsregisterforthe201516schoolyear.CentralBerkshireclosedtheelementaryschoolin
Cummingtonduetoinsufficientenrollment.
Combiningpositions.Severalschoolsreportedthattheymanagedbudgetdeficitsandsmall
schoolsbytakingonmultipleinstructionalandadministrativeroles.InFarmingtonRiver,thereading
directorisalsotheearlychildhoodcoordinatorandleadsaspectsoftheteacherevaluationsystem.
Startinginthe201617schoolyear,theprincipalwillalsobethesuperintendent,amodeltheschool
hasusedinthepast.AtMt.Greylock,theprincipalisalsothetestingcoordinator,andtheassistant
principalisalsotheheadofanacademicdepartment.NorthernBerkshireUnionsuperintendentJonLev
48
said,Oneofthebiggestwaysthatweareabletoexististhatourcentralofficeisbarebones.Wehave
aspecialeducationdirector,myself,abusinessmanager,andthatsit.Wedonthaveacafeteria
manager,afacilitiesmanager,specialeducationcoordinators,oreducationalcoaches.WouldIloveto
haveareadingcoachineachbuilding?Absolutely.Butthatshowwegetby.Healsothatteachers
bendoverbackwardstomakesuretheschoolcansurvive,bytakingonextraduties,fillinginfor
absentcolleaguestosaveonsubstituteteachercosts,andcompromisingonraisesandbenefits.
Purchasing14passengerbuses.SouthernBerkshirepurchasedtwoofthesebuses,which
reducedtransportationcostsforathleticsandfieldtripswhileallowingmoreflexibility.Thevanshave
enoughcapacitytofitmanyfullclasses.Teachersdrive,nospeciallicenseisrequired,andnocontractis
needed,unlikewiththelargeschoolbuses.Duetothedistrictscontractwithaschoolbuscompany,the
busescannotbeusedtobringstudentstoorfromschool.
Seekinggrants.BerkshireHillshasbeenseekingcompetitiveandprivatefoundationgrants,one
ofwhichisfundingtheirafterschoolprogram.NorthernBerkshireVocationalhasobtainedPerkinsand
Massachusettsstategrantstofundcapitalequipment.Mt.Greylockreceivesanannualgrantfrom
WilliamsCollegethathasfundedmajorpurchasesfortechnology,professionaldevelopment,trips,and
supplies.
Updatingtechnology.ALeeHighSchoolgraduatewhobecameasuccessfultechnology
entrepreneurconductedafreeassessmentoftheschoolstechnologyinfrastructureandneeds.The
resultingchangessavedthedistrict$110,000duringthe201516schoolyear,whichthesuperintendent
notedisalargesumforadistrictofLeessize.Thechangesincludedmodernizinghardwareand
software,reducingfrom11serversto2servers,usingGmailinsteadofpayingforemail,andusingopen
sourcesoftware(whichisfree)extensively.Also,theyarenowbuyingChromebooksratherthanmore
expensivelaptopanddesktopcomputers,andtheyanticipatethatinthenexttwoyearsabout40%of
studentswillbesupplyingtheirowndevices,whichwillbefacilitatedbytheschoolsinstallationof
wirelessinfrastructurethroughoutthebuilding.Thechangeshaveresultedinlessneedfortechnology
support,sothedistrictdidnotreplacetheirretiringtechnologydirector,whosesalaryandbenefitswere
thelargestpartofthe$110,000savings.NowthedistrictcontractswithWhalleyComputerAssociatesin
Southwickatacostofabout$30,000peryear.
Additionalstrategies.Severaldistrictsreportedreducingpersonnelandincreasingclasssizesas
costsavingstrategies.Aftermanyyearsinrentedlocations,theLeeadministrationwillmoveintoawing
ofLeeMiddleandHighSchool.NorthAdamsreducedthenumberofbusroutes.NorthernBerkshire
Vocationalusesthestatebidlisttobuycommoditiesatthebestprice.NorthAdamsconsolidateditsELL
servicesinoneelementaryschoolanditsautismservicesinanotherelementaryschool.Northern
BerkshireUnionusesadultvolunteerstoworkintheoffice,superviselunch,andtakeonanotherduties,
freeingteachersandparaprofessionalstospendmoretimewithstudents.
49
6.EstimatingFiscalImpactsofChangeStrategies
Theliteraturereviewsoughttoidentifyexamplesofrigorousandcosteffectivemethodsforestimating
thefiscalimpactsofdistrictregionalizationandinterdistrictsharedservices.Suchexamplescouldserve
asafoundationforplanningsubsequentphasesoftheTaskForceswork.Whilenohandbookonhow
tocarryoutsuchestimateswasidentified,severalreportsofdistrictsregionalizationplanningwere
identifiedthatcouldadvanceBerkshireCountyseffortstoestimatepotentialfiscalimpacts.Estimation
ofsavingsfrominterdistrictsharedservicescouldbecarriedoutusingmethodssimilartothe
regionalizationexamplesbelow,butfocusingonspecificcategoriesthatcouldbetargetsof
collaborationratherthantheentireschooldistrictbudget.
Threenearbyorganizationsthathaveestimatedbudgetsforschooldistrictregionalizationstudiesare
theNewEnglandSchoolDevelopmentCouncil(NESDEC),thePioneerValleyPlanningCommission
(PVPC),andtheRhodeIslandPublicExpenditureCouncil(RIPEC).TheNESDECstudiesobtainedwere
conductedtoexploreregionalizationeffortsinFranklinCounty(Croninetal.,2009);thetownsofAyer,
Lunenburg,andShirley(Davisetal.,2008);andthetownsofFreetownandLakeville(Bettencourtetal.,
2008).ThePVPCstudyexploredregionalizationofthetownsofGranville,Southwick,andTolland(PVPC,
2010).TheRIPECstudyexploredregionalizationoftheMiddletown,Newport,andPortsmouthschool
districtsonAquidneckIsland(RIPEC,2009).Multipleapproachestoestimatingfiscalimpactsareutilized
inthesereports.
TheFranklinCountyreportcomparesaverageperpupilcostsinthecountyandthestateforthemain
schoolfinancecategories(e.g.,administration,classroomandspecialistteachers,operationsand
maintenance)fromESEsschooldistrictprofiles.13Thedifferencebetweencountyandstateaveragesis
multipliedbythenumberofstudentsinthecountyasastartingpointfordiscussingpotentialcost
savingsthatcouldberealizedbybringingvariouscategoriesinlinewithstateaverages.Thereport
exploresthreepotentialreorganizationmodels:(1)asingle,countywidedistrict;(2)threedistricts;and
(3)fiveK12academicdistrictsplusasixthdistrictforthecountysvocationaltechnicalhighschool.The
modelsspecifyhowmanyadministratorseachdistrictwouldhaveandtheirsalaries,comparesthatto
theamountsspentonadministratorsinthecountysexistingdistricts,andusesthattopositasavings
associatedwitheachmodel.14
ThePVPCreportusesthestatesstatutorymethod15forestimatingbudgetsunderthefollowingthree
scenarios:(1)Nochangesweremade,andGranvilleremainedaseparateschooldistrict;(2)Granville
13
http://profiles.doe.mass.edu/
14
ESEnotifiedUMDIofanerrorinthereportthatshouldbetakenintoconsiderationifmakinguseofitsmethodsorfindings:
NESDECrealizedafterpublicationthattheirconclusionsaboutoutofdistrictcostswereincorrect.Thelowperstudentrateis
becausetherearesomanychoicestudentsat$5,000eachthattheaveragecostofoutofdistricttuitionsisgreatlyreduced.
Carleton,S.Personalcommunication,July20,2016.
15
Thestatutorymethodandthealternative/agreementmethodaredescribedinthisESEdocument:
http://www.doe.mass.edu/finance/regional/guidance.pdf
50
joinedSouthwickTollandRegionalSchoolDistrict,butprogrammingandstructuredidnotchange(e.g.,
noassumptionsweremadewithregardtotheuseofexcessanddeficiencyfunds,duplicationof
personnelorservices,orsavingsthatmightoccurwithchangedutilizationoffacilities;and(3)Granville
joinedSouthwickTollandRegionalSchoolDistrictandadditionalsavingsandefficiencieswerefound.
Thereportthenestimateswhateachtownspaymentswouldbeundereachscenario,providing
essentialinformationforeachtownsconsiderationofthefiscalimpactsofregionalization.Detailed
explanationsareprovidedofhowandwhythebudgetestimateswereconducted.
TheRIPECstudyexploresthefeasibilityofregionalizingthreedistrictsandconsolidatingsomeoftheir
schoolsbycomparingacombinedAquidneckIslanddistricttofourbenchmarkingcommunitiesin
otherstates.Thecommunitieswerecomparedonenrollments,testscores,revenues,expenditures,
staffing,student/teacherratios,personnelexpenditures,numberandtypeoffacilities,and
transportationexpenditures.Fiscalimpactsofregionalizationwereestimatedusingsixmodelsthat
exploreddifferentstudent/teacherratios,administrativestaffinglevels,andclosingoneortwoschools.
Savingsinservices,supplies,andcapitalexpendituresrelatedtotheschoolclosingswerealsoestimated.
Thereportprovidesextensivetables,charts,maps,andexplanationstoillustratehowcalculationswere
carriedoutandtheirrationales.Italsoexploresnonfiscalimpactsofregionalization,includingpossible
enhancementstotheeducationalexperienceandteachingforce;thepotentialtoretainthelocal
elementaryschoolmodel;andchallengessuchastransportationcosts,teachercontracts,andalignment
ofcurriculumandstandards.
ThestudyofregionalizingAyer,Lunenburg,andShirleydoesnotprovideasdetailedafinancialanalysis
asthereportsjustdescribed,butitprovidesusefuloverviewsofkeyfactorsthatcouldbeconsidered
duringregionalizationplanning.Thesefactorsincludefacilities,administrativestructureand
organization,geography,transportation,fiscalcostsandbenefits,andcomponentsofaregional
agreement.Thereportalsoprovidesextensiveappendicesofdatasourcesrelevanttoeachofthese
factors.
TheFreetownLakevillestudyexploredcreatingafullyregionalizedPK12districtfromtwotownsthat
eachhadanelementaryschooldistrictandwerealreadyregionalizedbeyondtheelementarylevel.The
studydoesnotprovideasmuchdetailassomeoftheotherreports.Itisnotclearwhetherthescopeof
analysiswaslessextensivethansomeoftheotherstudies,but,ifso,thestudycouldbeamodelifthe
TaskForceintendstodoalargenumberoflowercost,preliminarystudiesofthefiscalimpactsof
potentialdistrictpairingsorgroupings.TheFreetownLakevillestudyalsohighlightsapointthatTask
Forcemembershaveoftennotedthatahighpriorityforanyfiscalsavingsrealizeddueto
regionalizationmightbeincreasingeducationalqualityratherthanreducingbudgets.Oneofthestudys
conclusionsisthat,WithduplicativefunctionseliminatedinaPK12District,itisestimatedthatthe
SuperintendentandthreeDirectorsofBusiness,Instruction,andSpecialEducationwouldhave2530%
additionaltimetospendonsupervision,evaluation,andplanningactivitiesrelatedtothemission,
educationalprograms,andefficiencyofthenewDistrict(p.i).
51
Asacknowledgedinthereportsjustdescribed,theirfiscalmodelsdonotaccountforallpotentialcosts
andsavingsassociatedwithregionalization.TheTaskForcewouldneedtodecidewhichspecificbudget
areastoincludeinmodelingofregionalizationoptions(e.g.,administrators,transportation,technology);
thesedecisionswouldlikelybeinfluencedbyresourcesavailableformodelingstudies.TheFranklin
Countystudyprovidesoneapproachtoestimatingfiscalimpactsatthecountyorregionallevel,which
correspondstoTier3oftheTaskForcesproposedchangestrategies.Theotherstudiesfocusmoreon
partnershipsbetweengeographicallyproximaldistricts,whichcorrespondstoTier2oftheTaskForces
proposedstrategies.However,whileresourceintensive,theapproachesusedforgeographically
proximaldistrictscouldalsobeappliedtolargerregionsortheentirecounty.
SomeoftheauthorsoftheNESDECandPVPCstudiesremainactiveincurrenteffortstosupport
regionalizationinMassachusettsandcouldlikelyserviceasresourcesfortheTaskForcesnextsteps.
WhiletheauthorsoftheRIPECstudyarenotnamedinthereportdocument,itappearsthatbothRIPEC
andNESDECstudiedtheprospectsforregionalizationonAquidneckIsland(NESDEC,2011;RhodeIsland
DepartmentofElementaryandSecondaryEducation,2013,p.29).
ConclusionsandRecommendations
ThePhaseOnestudywasintendedtoreviewandconfirmavailableevidencethatdecreasedenrollment,
risingcosts,anddecliningorflatrevenuesposechallengestothequalityofeducationinBerkshire
County.TheevidencereviewedandpresentedclearlyindicatesthatthequalityofeducationinBerkshire
Countyisbeingthreatenedbythesefactors,withprogramimpactsalreadybeingexperiencedinsome
districtsandsignsofpotentialprogramimpactsovertimeinmostdistricts.
ThePhaseOnestudywasalsointendedtogenerateinsightsintothepotentialbenefitsandrisksof
sharedservicesandconsolidationstrategieswhenusedtoimproveefficiencyandsustainabilityofpublic
schooldistricts.Findingsregardingthesebenefitsandriskswerepresentedthroughoutthereport.The
followingsectionsoffer(a)conclusionsregardingtheimpactsofenrollment,cost,revenue,andprogram
trends;and(b)conclusionsandrecommendationsaboutsharedservicesandconsolidation.These
conclusionsandrecommendationsareofferedtoinformdiscussionandactionplanningbytheTask
Forceandotherstakeholders.
ImpactsofEnrollment,Cost,Revenue,andProgramTrends
BerkshireCountyexperiencedenrollmentdeclinesof22%from200015thataffectedallbuttwosingle
schooldistricts.Substantialadditionaldeclinesarelikely,withanaverageprojecteddeclineof11%from
2015to2025,andanaverageprojecteddeclineof7%from2025to2035.
Manyofthetrendsaffectingcostsandrevenuesmaycontinueintotheupcomingyearsaswell.These
trendsinclude(a)risingschooldistrictcoststhatarenotfullyoffsetbystatefundingoradditionallocal
52
taxrevenuesattributabletoincreasesinassessedvalues;(b)infrastructurecoststhatbecomehigherper
studentasenrollmentdeclinesandbuildingsarefilledwellbelowcapacity;(c)increasingnumbersof
highneedsstudents;(d)growingimpactsoftheschoolchoiceprocess,withbothwinnersand
losers;and(e)costsofpersonnelsalariesandbenefitsthataregrowingfasterthantotalschooldistrict
expenditures.
Economictrendsinthenextfiveyearsmaybesomewhatmorevariablethanenrollmenttrends,
althoughtheyaredifficulttopredictandheavilydependentonfactorsbeyondBerkshireCounty.If
recenteconomictrendscontinueasinthepastfiveyears,therewillbesubstantialadditionalstrainon
schooldistrictfinances.Stakeholderswillpromoteaddressingthesestrainsthroughacombinationof
increasedtaxationandstateprovidedrevenues,reducedexpenses,andgreaterefficiencies.
Forsomemunicipalities,includingafewthatservethemajorityofBerkshireCountyspublicschool
students,theabilitytoincreaserevenuethroughtaxationislimitedbylevyceilingsandoverride
capacity.Inmanyschooldistricts,thepreferencesofconstituentsmayalsolimittheabilitytoincrease
revenue.Asaresultoftheselimits,manydistrictswilllikelyneedtomakechangestotheservicesthey
provide.First,somedistrictswillreduceacademic,extracurricular,and/orsupportservices,asmany
administratorsreportedwasdoneinthepast5or15years.Second,somedistrictswillattemptto
moderatetheimpactsofthesereductions,usingstrategiesdescribedinthisreport,suchasincreasing
classsizes,reducingthenumberofsectionsofcertaincourses,offeringmultiplecoursesorcourselevels
inasingleclassroom,increasingtheuseofonlinecoursesandothertechnologyassistedacademicwork,
combiningextracurricularactivitiesacrossschoolsordistricts,andinstitutingorincreasingparticipation
fees.Manyadministratorssaidthatpastandfuturechangessuchasthesehavereducedandwill
continuetohavenegativeimpactsonstudentengagement,educationalquality,andstudentscareer
optionsandcollegeadmissionsprospects.
Manydistrictswillalsocontinueandextendtheirmanypasteffortstoreducecosts.Asdetailedinthe
report,theseeffortshaveincludedextensiveworkrelatedtosharedservices,includingpersonnel,
professionaldevelopment,specialeducationandhealthcareservices,athletics,communityand
governmentpartners,transportation,andadditionalareas.Individualdistrictshavealsoreported
managingcostsrelatedtoenergy,technology,andsomeoftheareasjustmentionedinrelationto
sharedservices.Finally,manydistrictsdescribedtheirpreliminarythoughtsaboutorstepstoward
regionalizationefforts,althoughtheseeffortswerelessdevelopedthanotherstrategies.Advancingthe
discussionandmodelingofregionalizationeffortstoimprovefinancialsustainabilityandeducational
qualitywillbeahighpriorityforthenextphaseoftheTaskForceswork.
TheTaskForcemaywishtorevisittheresearchquestionsofthePhaseOnestudyperiodicallyto
determinewhethertheenrollment,cost,revenue,andprogramtrendsmotivatingtheirworkhave
continued,worsened,orabated.Continuationorworseningofthedocumentedtrendswouldprovidea
strongrationaleforcontinuedeffortstoimprovetheeducationalqualityandfinancialsustainabilityof
BerkshireCountysschooldistricts.
53
SharedServices
Asnotedintheintroduction,theTaskForcehasproposedthreetiersofchangestrategies.Tier1is
Advancecollaborativeandsharedservicessolutionssuchascooperativepurchasing,transportation,
andsharedspecialeducationprogramming.Sharedservicestrategiesappeartobepromisingtopursue
immediately,forseveralreasons:
Muchsharedservicesworkisalreadyhappeninginthecounty,butitappearsthatmorecould
bedone,withahighlikelihoodofadditionalcostsavingsandefficiencies.
Regionalizationeffortsmaytakesubstantiallylongertoachievethansharedserviceswork.In
themeantime,thesharedservicesagendacouldbeprogressing.
Engaginginsharedserviceswouldadvancecollaborativerelationshipsamongdistrictsthat
mightfacilitatefutureregionalization.
Itisimportanttoknowtheextentofcostsavingsthatcanberealizedthroughsharedservices.
Thiscanbeestimatedthroughplanning,butitwillonlybeascertainedthroughimplementation.
Theliteraturesuggeststhatthesavingswillbemeaningfulbutnotsufficienttofullyresolve
manydistrictsfiscalchallenges.Gettingthisworkunderwaywillprovidecrucialinformation
aboutwhatadditionalcostsavingmeasuresdistrictswillneedtopursue.
Implementingcertainsharedservicesmayrequirechangestocollectivebargainingagreements,
asnotedbyonesuperintendent.Identifyingwhichsharedservicesfallintothiscategoryand
engagingindiscussionsabouthowtoachievedesiredchangesreportedlyrequiressubstantial
leadtimeforplanningandnegotiation.
AdvancingtheseeffortsisthereforeanessentialpartoftheestimationoffiscalimpactsinPhaseTwo.
Futureworkinthisareacouldincludethefollowing:
Documentinganticipatedbenefitstoeducationalqualityduetofurtherimplementationof
sharedservicesstrategies.
DocumentingthespecificworkbeingdonebythegroupsinsouthernandnorthernBerkshire
Countythatarealreadydiscussingandimplementingsharedserviceswork.
Reviewingtheextensivecostsavingstrategiesbeingpursuedbyindividualdistrictsand
exploringwhethersimilaractionscouldbefacilitatedinadditionaldistrictsthroughshared
servicesinitiatives.
Documentingtheservicesthatareavailablethroughexistingstatecollaboratives,assessing
whatneedstheymightfulfillinBerkshireCounty,andseekingevidenceofreducingcostswhile
maintainingorincreasingqualityofprogramsandservices.
Investigatingthepotentialadvantagesanddisadvantagesofforminganewcollaborativethatis
specificallyfocusedontheneedsofBerkshireCounty.Ausefulresourceforthiseffortcouldbea
54
memoandsummaryreportfromtheMassachusettsAssociationofSchoolCommitteesthat
reviewedchallengesandpotentialareasforservicesandprovidedrecommendationstothe
formerSouthernBerkshireEducationalCollaborative(Koocher,2003).
Estimatingthepotentialcostsavingsofengaginginvarioussharedserviceefforts.
Investigatingtheissuesassociatedwithsharedservicesandcollectivebargainingagreements.
Identifyingincentivesprovidedbythestateforestablishingorengagingwithcollaborativesor
othersharedservicesefforts.Alsoidentifyingincentivesthathavebeenprovidedbyotherstates
andconsideringwhetherandhowtoadvocateforsimilarincentivesforBerkshireCounty.
SchoolDistrictConsolidation
Tiers2and3oftheTaskForcesproposedchangestrategiesare,respectively,Advanceformal
partnershipsbetweengeographicallyproximaldistrictsandAdvancereorganizationoftheentire
countyintoasuperregionofonetothreedistricts.Bothofthesetiersfocusondistrictconsolidation.It
isimportanttorecognizethatconsolidationappearstofacegreaterchallengestoimplementationthan
thesharedservicesstrategiesjustdiscussed.Someofthechallengesthatwouldneedbeaddressed
include:
Mixedevidenceregardingthepotentialcostsavingsandacademicimpactsofregionalizing.
Maximizingtheaccuracyofcostsavingsestimates.
EvidencefromrecenthistorythatstakeholdersinMassachusettsdistrictsandnationallyare
oftenreluctanttoregionalize,duetoconcernsaboutlocalcontrol,schoolclosings,joblosses,
traveltimes,andreducedacademicopportunitiesinoneormoreoftheregionalizingdistricts.
TherecentFranklinCountyexperienceisimportanttoconsider,becausetheir2020Vision
Plan(Croninetal.,2009)yieldedoptionssimilartoTiers2and3oftheBCETFplan,with
millionsofdollarsinestimatedcostsavings,yetminimalprogresshasbeenmadetoward
regionalizationinthesubsequentsevenyears.
ThiscontextsuggeststhatPhaseTwoshouldbeseenasreflectedintheTaskForcesgoalstatements
asanopportunitytoexplorethepotentialmeritsandfeasibilityofregionalization.Futureworkinthis
areacouldincludethefollowing:
Estimatethecostsavingsofpotentialregionalizationoptions.
Conductongoingdiscussionswithnumerousstakeholdergroupsincludingparents,school
personnel,citizens,policymakers,andemployersabouttheTaskForcesfindingsregarding
enrollment,cost,andrevenuetrendsandtheirimplicationsforeducationalcostsandqualityin
BerkshireCounty.Emphasizebothshorttermandlongtermprojections.Befullytransparent
aboutimplicationsofdifferentregionalizationscenariosforlocalcontrol,schoolclosings,
employment,andtraveltimes.Clarifythedifferentoptionsforregionalization,manyofwhich
arealreadyinoperationinBerkshireCounty,includingsomethatdonotrequireschoolclosings.
55
ConsiderwhetherTier3holdssufficientpromiseintermsoffeasibilityandoptimaldistrictsize
forcostsavingsandsustainingorimprovingeducationalquality.Tier3wouldimplyasingle
districtofabout15,000studentsorthreedistrictsofabout5,000studentseach(basedon
projected2020enrollmentestimates).Thesedistrictsizesexceedtheoptimalsizesestimatedin
somestudies.Moreover,giventhecomplexityofachievingagreementregardingregionalization
amongeventwoorthreedistricts,feasibilityofsuperregionsisakeyquestion.
ConsiderwhetherregionalizationattheTier2levelmaybebothmoreachievableandmore
likelytoyielddesiredoutcomes.Alsorecognizetheimportanceofdistrictbuyinandfull
participationinanymodelingefforts,aswellastheresourceintensivenatureofcreatingsuch
estimates.Oneapproachwouldbetoestablishaprocesstoidentifyasmallnumberofdistrict
groupings,perhapsonetothree,thatdemonstratestronginterestandmotivationtoparticipate
fullyinexploringaregionalizationprocess.ThismayenabletheTaskForcetoutilizemost
effectivelytheresourcesavailableformodelingcostsavings,programofferings,andother
questionsofinterest,whilealsomaximizingthelikelihoodofdistrictsactingonthefindingsif
themodelingsuggeststhatregionalizationiswarranted.Italsorecognizesthatsomedistricts
appeartohavelimitedinterestinregionalizing(orfurtherregionalizing)atthistime.
Considerpromotingandprovidingsupportforaprocessthatwouldhelpdistrictsassess
whethertheymaybestrongcandidatesforregionalization.Thedistrictcapacityassessmenttool
developedbytheMassachusettsSpecialCommissiononSchoolDistrictCollaborationand
Regionalization(2011)maybeavaluableresourceforstructuringthatprocessandhelping
districtsdeterminewhethertheyareassessingcurrentandfuturerisksaccurately.16An
additionalstepwouldbesynthesizingfindingsacrossdistrictstohelpdistrictsandother
stakeholdersassesstherelativeurgencyoftheirsituations.
Analyzeindicatorsthatmaysuggestagreaterlikelihoodofcostsavingsuponregionalization.
Onesuchindicatoriseachdistrictsadministrativecostperstudent,whichisinvestigatedina
studyofthecentralofficecapacityinMassachusettsregionaldistricts(Massachusetts
AssociationofRegionalSchools,2009).Thelevelofdistrict,county,andstateexpendituresin
differentfunctionalcategoriespresentedinthisreportcouldsupportsuchanalyses.
Considercostsassociatedwithbothmaintainingexistingschoolbuildingsandclosingbuildings,
asthesewillbekeyfactorsinmanydistrictsdecisionsregardingwhetherornottoregionalize.
Considerschoolchoicenumberscarefully,assomedistrictsmaygainschoolchoicestudents
morequicklyastheirfoundationenrollmentdeclines.Thismayalsoimplythatthestudents
sendingdistrictswouldexperiencemorerapidenrollmentdeclinesthancurrentlypredicted.
Aswithsharedservicesmodels,itwillbeimportanttoconsiderissuesrelatedtocollective
bargainingagreementsaswellasexistingstateincentivesforregionalizing.Considerseeking
16
TheLenoxandRichmondschooldistrictshavebothalreadyutilizedthecapacityassessmenttool(LenoxSchoolCommittee,
2015;MassachusettsAssociationofRegionalSchools,2015).
56
additionalstateincentivestosupporttransitioncosts,whichtheliteraturesuggestscanlastfor
severalyearsafterregionalizationtakesplace.
SomeadditionalrecommendationsfromNewJerseysAssemblyTaskForceonSchoolDistrict
Regionalizationreport(1999)thatmayberelevanttofacilitatingeffectiveregionalizationprocessesin
BerkshireCountyincludethefollowing:
Providestudentswiththeoptionofcompletingtheireducationattheschooltheyattended
priortoschooldistrictregionalization.
Establishsitebasedmanagementandbuildinglevelcontrolgroupstoaffordgreaterlocal
controlandparentsparticipationconsistentwithdistrictpoliciesandcurriculum.
Educateemployees,whowillbeimpactedbytheformationorexpansionofnewdistricts,
concerningtheirsalaryandbenefitpackages.
Anyvoluntaryregionalizationplanshould,tothegreatestextentpossible,protectschool
employeesrightsrelatingtoseniority,tenure,andhealthbenefits.
AdditionalrecommendationsfromtheNewJerseyreportconsiderstateregulationsthatmaydiffer
betweenNewJerseyandMassachusetts,butwhichshouldbeconsideredforpotentialapplicabilityto
Massachusettsasawaytoreduceobstaclestoregionalization.Theserecommendationsalsohighlight
theimportanceofcollaboratingandengaginginadvocacyeffortswithstategovernmenttofostera
policyenvironmentthatsupportsregionalizationasastrategyforimprovingfinancialsustainabilityand
educationalqualityinBerkshireCounty.
57
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Budget.html?source=most_read
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http://nepc.colorado.edu/publication/consolidationschoolsdistricts.
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recommendations.MemorandumtoSouthernBerkshireCollaborativeBoardofDirectorsandSteering
Committee.Boston,MA:MassachusettsAssociationofSchoolCommittees.
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Lenox,MA.
MassachusettsAssociationofRegionalSchools.(2009).Astudyofcentralofficecapacityinregional
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http://www.massassociationregionalschools.org/downloads/1109mars.pdf
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AppendixA
FirstAdministratorInterviewProtocol
(5YearTimeFrame)
Introduction
Thankyoufortakingthetimetospeakwithmetoday.IworkfortheUMassDonahueInstitute.
ThisinterviewispartofastudyweareconductingfortheBerkshireCountyEducationTask
Force,whichisagroupofcurrentandformerschooladministratorsandeducators,school
committeemembers,townadministrators,andlocalbusinessleaders.
TheTaskForcehasconcludedthatBerkshireCountyisfacingreductionsineducational
programsduetodecliningstudentenrollmentandrevenuesthatarenotkeepingpacewith
costs.Theyareworkingtodeveloprecommendationsthatwillenableallschooldistrictsto
sustainqualityeducationinBerkshireCounty.
TheForcewantsinputfromadministratorsineachofthecountysschooldistrictswhohave
directandcurrentknowledgeoftheissuesthatareatthecenteroftheTaskForcesmission.
Wewillbesharingthefindingsfromthisinterviewwithinterestedparties.However,inthe
eventthatyouwouldpreferforparticularstatementstoremainconfidential,pleaseletme
know,andIwillprotecttheconfidentialityofthosestatements.Askpermissiontousethe
recorder.
A.Pastchangesduetodecliningenrollmentand/orrevenueshortfalls(12min)
1) Hasyourdistrictneededtoreduceeducationalprogramsinthepastfiveyearsduetodeclining
studentenrollmentand/orrevenueshortfalls?(Ifyes)Pleasedescribethereductions.
2) Hasyourdistrictneededtoreduceextracurricularorcocurricularprogramsandservicesinthe
pastfiveyearsduetodecliningstudentenrollmentand/orrevenueshortfalls?Thesemight
includeclubs,sports,transportation,orotherprogramsandservices.(Ifyes)Pleasedescribethe
reductions.
3) Hasyourdistrictneededtoreducestudentsupportservicesinthepastfiveyearsdueto
decliningstudentenrollmentand/orrevenueshortfalls?(Ifyes)Pleasedescribethereductions.
B.Likelyfuturechangesduetodecliningenrollmentand/orrevenueshortfalls
4) Inwhatways,ifany,doyouanticipatethatstudentenrollmentandrevenuetrendswillaffect
yourdistrictseducationalprogramsinthenextfiveschoolyears?
5) Inwhatways,ifany,doyouanticipatethatstudentenrollmentandrevenuetrendswillaffect
yourdistrictsextracurricularorcocurricularprogramsinthenextfiveschoolyears?
62
C.ApproachestocreateamorefinanciallysustainableeducationalsysteminBerkshireCounty
6) Inlightoftheenrollmentandrevenuetrendsthatwehavebeendiscussing,aretherestepsthat
yourdistricthasalreadytakentomanagecostswhilesustainingeducationalquality?
7) Arethereadditionalstepsthatyourdistrictplanstopursueinthefuturetomanagecostswhile
sustainingeducationalquality?Probeifnotalreadymentioned:
a. Hasyourdistrictdiscussedrealizingfinancialsavingsthroughnewtechnologies?
b. Hasyourdistrictdiscussedrealizingfinancialsavingsthroughnewpartnershipsor
regionalagreementswithotherdistricts?
63
AppendixB
SecondAdministratorInterviewProtocol
(15YearTimeFrame)
Introduction
Thankyoufortakingthetimetospeakwithmetoday.IworkfortheUMassDonahueInstitute.
Asyouknow,thisinterviewispartofastudyweareconductingfortheBerkshireCounty
EducationTaskForce.
Ihavealreadyinterviewedaprincipaland/orsuperintendentfromeachschooldistrictinthe
county,askingthemaboutchangesinthepastfiveyearsandthenextfiveyears.Afterreviewing
thefindings,theTaskForceaskedmetoconductadditionalinterviewswithadministratorswho
haveworkedinthecountyforatleast15years,andtoseektheirperspectivesonchangesthat
havehappenedduringthepast15years.
Wewillbesharingthefindingsfromthisinterviewwithinterestedparties.However,inthe
eventthatyouwouldpreferforparticularstatementstoremainconfidential,pleaseletme
know,andIwillprotecttheconfidentialityofthosestatements.Askpermissiontousethe
recorder.
A.Background
1) WhatadministrativepositionshaveyouheldinBerkshireCounty,andduringwhatyears?
B.Changesinthepast15years
Inrespondingtothefollowingquestions,feelfreetofocusonlyonthedistrictsorschoollevelsthatyou
haveworkedin.Butifyoufeelthatyoualsohavesufficientinformationtocommentaboutotherschool
levels,otherdistricts,and/orthecountyasawhole,pleasespeakaboutthatbroadercontextaswell.
[Followupquestionsregardingprogramandservicereductionswillbeaskedonlyif
intervieweesindicatethatreductionshaveoccurred.]
2) Overthepast15years,haveBerkshireCountyschooldistrictsneededtoreducetheir
educationalprogramofferingsattheelementaryand/orsecondarylevels?
a. Wouldyoudescribethosereductionsinthepast15yearsasminimal,moderate,or
extensive?
b. Pleasesummarizewhatyouseeasthemainreductionsineducationalprogramofferings
thathavetakenplaceattheelementaryandsecondarylevelsinthepast15years.
c. [Probeifnotmentioned]Duringthepast15years,havedecreasesinthenumbersof
sectionsofcertainclassesresultedinstudentsbeinglessabletotakeclassesthatthey
64
wantedtotake?[Ifyes]Wouldyoudescribetheextentofthisproblemasminimal,
moderate,orextensive?
d. [Probeifnotmentioned]Someschoolswithlimitedstaffingand/orlimitedstudent
enrollmentdiversifytheircourseofferingsbyteachingmultiplecoursesinthesame
roomatthesametimewithasingleteacher.Exampleswouldbethreedifferentlevels
ofFrenchinthesameroom,orastandardlevelgeometrycoursewherestudentscould
receivehonorsbycompletingadditionalassignments.Didyouusethisapproachin
districtswhereyouworked?Haveyouheardaboutthisapproachbeingusedinother
BerkshireCountydistricts?
i. [Ifyestoeitheroftheprevioustwoquestions]Haveyouseentheextentofthis
approachincreaseinthepast15years?Whatdoyouseeasthestrengthsand
limitationsofthisapproach?
e. Duringthepast15years,hasthelevelofacademicsupportavailabletoeachstudent
declined?[Ifyes]Wouldyoudescribetheextentofthisdeclineasminimal,
moderate,orextensive?Inwhatwayshasthisdeclineaffectedstudents
educationalexperiences?
3) Overthepast15years,haveBerkshireCountyschooldistrictsneededtoreduceextracurricular
orcocurricularprogramsandservicesattheelementaryand/orsecondarylevels?Thesemight
includeclubs,sports,transportation,orotherprogramsandservices.
extensive?
b. Pleasesummarizewhatyouseeasthemainreductionsinextracurricularorco
curricularprogramsandservicesthathavetakenplaceattheelementaryandsecondary
levelsinthepast15years.
4) Overthepast15years,haveBerkshireCountyschooldistrictsneededtoreducestudentsupport
servicesattheelementary,secondary,and/ordistrictlevels?
extensive?
b. Pleasesummarizewhatyouseeasthemainreductionsinstudentsupportservicesthat
havetakenplaceattheelementaryandsecondarylevelsinthepast15years.
5) NowIhaveafewquestionswithregardtoalloftheeducational,extracurricular,andsupport
serviceofferingsthatyouhavedescribedasbeingreducedoverthepast15years.
a. Whatdoyouseeasthecausesofthereductionsoverthepast15years?
b. Whatdoyouseeasanyimplicationsofthereductionsforthequalityofeducational
opportunitiesinBerkshireCounty?
65
c. Whatdoyouseeasanyimplicationsofthereductionsforstudentscollegeandcareer
readiness?Whatdoyouseeasanyimplicationsofthereductionsforstudents
opportunitieswithregardtocollegeadmissions?
d. Arethereanyotherimplicationsofthereductionsthatyouwouldliketocommenton?
66

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